Reports indicate that President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered the Acting Inspector-General of Police, IGP, Ibrahim Idris, to launch an investigate probe into the allegations of budget padding, leveled against the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara.
Following this, the IGP has raised a five-man special team to probe Dogara and some of his principal officers indicted in the alleged padding, the Nation gathered.
The Assistant Inspector-General of Police, AIG, Amodu Ali-led Special Investigative Panel, SIP, has invited Dogara, his deputy Yusuff Lasun, Chief Whip Alhassan Ado Doguwa and Minority Leader Leo Ogor to appear before it on Friday, August 5.
The panel on Tuesday, August 2, had what was called “a preliminary session” with ousted House Committee on Appropriations chairman, Abdulmumin Jibrin, who accused Dogara and others of padding the budget with a whooping N284 billion.
Recall, that Jibrin had petitioned the police, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and other anti-corruption agencies over the 2016 budget padding.
According to reports, Jibrin was said to have “furnished the SIP with vital information and a heap of documents” at their meeting on Tuesday.
A highly-placed police source, who spoke with the Nation, said Ibrahim has directed the SIP to conduct a “comprehensive investigation into Jibrin’s petition”.
The source said: “We have commenced full investigation into the N284 billion budget padding in the House of Representatives based on a petition from Hon. Jibrin.”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”.
Asked of the preliminary work done by the SIP, the source added: “As I am talking to you (4pm yesterday), a letter of invitation has been addressed and sent to the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker, the Chief Whip and the Minority Leader.
“They will be interrogated by the SIP on Friday. As a prelude to the invitation of the principal officers, the SIP chairman and members had a session with Jibrin on Tuesday.“It was not a grilling session. But 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.”
Also yesterday, Jibrin confirmed that security has been beefed up around him by the Department of State Service, DSS, and the police.
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