Politics
Jibrin confesses to being part of House sleaze, got N650m
A new twist has been added to the budget padding allegation rocking the House of Representatives, as the sacked Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, Abdulmumin Jibrin, Saturday, confessed to receiving N650 million in questionable office maintenance allowances.
It would be recalled that the Kano State born lawmaker had on Friday alleged that the Speaker of the House, Yakubu Dogara and nine others took N10 billion in illegal allowances.
The lawmaker, who has been waging a relentless war against Dogara and three other principal officers of the House over his allegations that they padded the 2016 budget to the of N40 billion, said the Speaker took the largest share of N1.5 billion as running cost allowance.
Read also: Untiring Jibrin alleges Dogara, others collected N10bn as running cost
According to him, the Deputy Speaker, Yusuf Lasun, got N800 million, Majority Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, got N1.2 billion, his deputy, Buba Jibril, got N1.2 billion, House Whip, Alhassan Doguwa, got N1.2 billion, while his deputy, Pally Iriase, got N700 million.
Other beneficiaries, according to Jibrin, are Minority Leader, Leo Ogor, N1.2 billion, his deputy, Chukwuka Onyema: N800 million, Minority Whip, Yakubu Barde, N700 million and his deputy, Binta Bello, N700 million.
Saturday’s confession is the first time Jibrin would be accepting to being part of the large scale fraud he alleged has been going on at the lower chamber of the National Assembly.
He however expressed regret for taking the money, promising to give full detail of how he spent the N650 million.
“I have records and account of how I spent every penny that I have taken. In fact, it has been published in a 150-page book.
“However, I have never been comfortable with the money! Thank God the wasteful allowances regime has reached its Waterloo! The country and House will be better off!”
By Timothy Enietan-Matthews
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