Civil Society Group Worried Over EFCC’s Refusal To Probe Speaker Dogara After Damning Evidence

Conscience Nigeria, a civil society group, has demanded an explanation on why the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has not probed Yakubu Dogara, and other principal officers of the house of representatives over the allegations of budget padding.

The group said this in a petition addressed to Ibrahim Magu, chairman of the commission.

Tosin Adeyanju, executive director of Conscience Nigeria, submitted the petition at the Lagos office of the EFCC.

Adeyanju wondered why none of those “exposed” by Abdulmumin Jibril, former chairman of the appropriation committee of the house, had been investigated.

“We are disturbed by what seems to be the grand conspiracy by some persons to discard the enormity of the depth of corruption involved in the entire scenario as Nigerians have been made to know over the past couple of weeks,” the petition read.

“It would be recalled that sometimes in June this year, the former chairman of the federal house of representatives, Honourable Abdulmumin Jibril, spilled the beans on the numerous insertions that were illegally imputed into the 2016 budget of the country by the principal officers of the house of representatives in the course of working on the budget submitted to the national assembly by President Muhammadu Buhari for personal gains.

“Even though this practice of padding the budget illegally did not start today, we are worried that the present crops of members of the house of representatives are still in the business despite the stance of the current administration on issues of corruption.

“It is on record that over the years, the national assembly has promoted corruption as direct policy, with such an alarming rate of impunity and arrogance of being above the law. It is a known fact that no nation develops when you have such high profile looters parading as leaders prowling the nation’s political space with impunity.

“Sir, something just have to be done and be done urgently too before corruption kills Nigeria. Till date, none of the actors in the budget padding scandal i.e Honorable Abdulmumin Jibrin (former Chairman of House Committee on Appropriation), Honorable Yakubu Dogara (Speaker), Honorable Lasun Yusuff (Deputy Speaker), Honorable Ado Doguwa (Chief Whip) and Honorable Leo Ogor (Minority Leader) among others, who have been directly fingered as perpetrators of the Budget fraud has been invited, investigated or prosecuted over this crime against law abiding tax payers and working people of Nigeria.

Adeyanju advised the anti-graft agency to commence investigations immediately so as to prove that there are no “sacred cows” in the corruption fight of the current administration.

“We hereby urge your noble Commission, to do the needful, by ensuring that everyone involved in the budget padding scandal is made to face the full wrath of the law irrespective of their position or party affiliation,” the petition read.

“No good governance can be guaranteed or sustained in a situation of national moral epidemic when all institutions of government have been morally destroyed due to corruption. It will be a disservice to the nation and to us, Nigerians, as victims of corruption to leave the perpetrators of this act of corruption untouched, even in the face of glaring evidences of their involvements.

“For the ongoing anti-corruption war to be successful, our nation must ensure that there are no sacred cows and no stone is left unturned in the fight against corruption.”