Budget Scandal: FG May Withdraw Dogara’s Security Details

By Emman Ovuakporie and Johnbosco Agbakwuru

ABUJA – INDICATIONS emerged Sunday that security details of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara may be withdrawn on the orders of the Federal Government over the controversy surrounding the 2016 budget.

It was also gathered that a document linking the Majority leader of the House, Femi Gbajabimila with constituency projects worth over N4 billion which is domiciled in Osun and Niger States against the initial N1.8 billion constituency projects allocated to him was in circulation.

This is just as the secretariat of the House Appropriation Committee was on Sunday still under the watch of about four security operatives.

Security sources hinted that the withdrawal of security aides to the principal officers allegedly fingered in the budget brouhaha was ensure that there was no obstruction on the course of investigations.

Investigations revealed that the security personnel that were guiding the appropriation committee secretariat were not the regular operatives from the National Assembly.

Meanwhile about 27 civil society organisations have raised the alarm of alleged conspiracy with external forces against the leadership of the House of Representatives, saying that if nothing was done to apply caution, it would threaten the democracy in the country.

Addressing journalists in Abuja, the national coordinator of Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko alongside other 26 CSOs, said “It is disingenuous for the sacked Appropriation committee chairman, Abdulmumin Jibrin to make any claims of exposing massive corruption in the House, accusing speaker Yakubu Dogara of moves to personally smuggle N30bn into 2016 budget.”

He said that the understanding of the powers of the National Assembly seems to say that the legislature is constitutionally empowered to vet proposed budget since these elected officials were not rubber stamps of the president.