Nigerian parliament plots to frustrate probe

By Eromo Egbejule,
WorldNewsVine, Nigeria

Lagos (Aug 30) – The helmsmen of the Nigerian National Assembly has begun efforts to truncate the ongoing probe of its allowances by the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC), NEXT has learnt.

The commission began the probe two weeks ago, following a statement by former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, that even as president, could not determine how much our legislators really cost the nation. Mr Obasanjo also said that apart from inflating government budgets to suit their own purposes, each federal legislator cost the nation about N250 million annually.

Nigerians expecting to hear the outcome of the probe may have to wait longer as multiple sources have confirmed that the National Assembly leadership is determined to ensure that the chairman of the ICPC, Emmanuel Ayoola, drops the investigations.

“Pressure is being mounted on the ICPC chair to stop the probe. You know what they (the ICPC) are trying to do may spell doom for the country, as it may open all kind of things,” a National Assembly source told our reporter.

Another source close to Mr Ayoola said, “they (the legislators) are running about trying to stop the inquiry. They are using persons close to him, trying to corner Justice Ayoola into dropping the investigations. You know what the ICPC is trying to do is a system review, it will surely expose them if properly carried out.”

This is not the first time that a probe of the National Assembly finances will fail to lead to any prosecution.

Farida Waziri, the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, said at a press conference on June 7 that her commission has concluded investigations into the 2.3 billion naira Peugeot car scandal, and that a copy of its report had been sent to its legal department and to the presidency, a claim the presidency promptly denied.

Two months after Mrs Waziri’s statement, not only has no one been able to locate the report, but the EFCC has kept mum about it. The report allegedly indicted Dimeji Bankole, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and other leaders of the House.

Posted by Egbejule Eromo on August 30, 2010. Filed under Africa Regional News,International News,International Politics,News,News - Africa,Nigeria,Western Africa,WorldNewsVine. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.