Politics

Police moves in, invites Dogara, others over budget padding claims

Published

8 years ago

August 3, 2016

The current controversy surrounding the padding of the 2016 budget has received the official attention of the police, as the Acting Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris has raised a five-man special investigative team to probe the allegation.

According to reports, the SIP, led by Assistant Inspector-General of Police, AIG, Amodu Ali has invited Dogara, his deputy Yusuff Lasun, Chief Whip Alhassan Ado Doguwa and Minority Leader Leo Ogor to appear before it on Friday.

It was also gathered that the panel yesterday had a preliminary session with the former Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, Abdulmumin Jibrin, who accused Dogara and others of padding the budget with N284 billion.

It would be recalled that Jibrin had petitioned the police, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and other over the allegation against Dogara, his deputy, Lasun Yusuf, the Chief Whip of the House, Alhassan Ado-Doguwa and Minority Leader, Leo Ogor.

According to a police source, the IGP has directed the SIP to conduct a “comprehensive investigation into Jibrin’s petition.”

The source said: “We have commenced full investigation into the N284billion budget padding in the House of Representatives based on a petition from Hon. Jibrin.

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”A Special Investigative Panel (SIP), with a crack detective, AIG Amodu Ali as the chairman, is the one saddled with the responsibility of looking into the allegations in the petition. The same Ali uncovered the lid on the $620,000 bribery scam in the House for which a former Chairman of the House Committee on Fuel Subsidy Management, Mallam Farouk Lawan, and the Clerk of the committee, Mr. Boniface Emenalo were indicted. The case is in court.

“You will recall that Ali was deeply involved in the investigation of the $180million Halliburton scam. So, the SIP is led by an officer who is tested.

“A letter of invitation has been addressed and sent to the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker, the Chief Whip and the Minority Leader.

“Jibrin furnished the team with vital information and a heap of documents to back up the petition he submitted on Monday.

“We are going into the merit or otherwise of the petition on Friday by inviting Dogara and three others. It is going to be a gradual thing but we will crack the padding controversy.”

By Timothy Enietan-Matthews

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