The heat is on as a group of lawmakers in the House of Representatives that calls itself- Transparency Group numbering about 100 cutting across all political parties and all the geo-political zones of the country have demanded that an external and independent investigation of 2016 budget padding allegations against the Speaker and some principal staff of the House of Representatives.
The call is sequel to the ongoing controversy regarding allegations of the padding of the 2016 budget by former House Committee Chairman on Appropriation, Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin.
In a swift reaction, the Chairman of the House Committee on Media, Hon. Abdulrazak Namdas, dismissed the allegations by Mr Jibrin against the House leadership.
Speaker Yakubu Dogara has in a statement issued by his spokesman, Turaki Hassan, given the former Appropriation Committee Chairman a seven – day ultimatum to tender an unreserved apology to him and retract all allegations made against him or face legal action.
The former Chairman, however, replied that he would never apologize to the Speaker over the allegations. He noted that his lawyers have officially approached anti-graft agencies, towards working out a date for him to submit his petition and brief the agencies.
Speaking in Abuja, the spokesman of the Transparency Group, Hon. Mohammad Soba, said that Hon. Namdas does not have the mandate of the House to speak on the matter.
