Twists, turns on budget padding: Our case against Jibrin, by House Committee Chairman

Dogara and Jibrin

Since the removal of the former Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations, Abdulmumin Jibrin, by the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, on Wednesday, July 20, there have been allegations and counter-allegations on how the 2016 budget was mutilated. 
In the eye of storm are Jibrin; Dogara; the Deputy Speaker of the House, Yusuf Lasun; the Chief Whip, Ado Doguwa, and the Minority Leader, Leo Ogor. Jibrin claimed the four principal officers of the House are culpable in the alleged mutilation of the budget, saying they put pressure on him while deciding on who got what during the budgeting process. But to many members of the House, who seem to be on Dogara’s side, there has been the suspicion of external influence that played a prominent role during the election of the principal officers and even blackmail to discredit the House and its leadership. They want concrete proof of the allegation of budget mutilation against the House officials. For instance, the Chairman of the House Committee on Health Services, Chike John Okafor, told Sunday Vanguard that it was surprising to him how the former Appropriations Committee Chairman got health constituency project worth about N500 million for his Bebeji/Kiru Federal Constituency of Kano State without the knowledge of his committee. Okafor claimed that Jibrin tried to lobby his committee to take something for his constituency project which the committee did not consent to, but expressed surprise that without the knowledge of the committee, the former Appropriations Chairman inserted the health project for his constituency. 

Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/08/twists-turns-budget-padding-case-jibrin-house-committee-chairman/