Nigeria is
one country where comedy is the order of the day. In fact, in the midst of
whatever crisis, be it politically or economically, some set of politicos will
come up with one form of distraction or the other, to lull our senses and make
us forget the burning issue threatening to bring down the nation.
If it is not
Senators abusing themselves and threatening to impregnate one another, it will
be governors embarking on a vocational training abroad. What? Yes, our
governors will soon be on their way to Germany to train themselves on how to
fix roads, repair cars, change tyres, make hair, plant cassava and cook
delicious meals. Abi, is that not what vocational training is all about?
The new wave
of comedy engulfing the National Assembly erupted last week when the Speaker of
the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, a fine gentleman that he is,
decided to shove aside his one-time right hand man, Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin, the
Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, on charges of padding the
budget. That word again!
Yes, the same
padding that saw the NASS members inflating the budget by outrageous
proportions. So Dogara actually forced Jibrin to step aside and for those who
know, the Appropriations Committee is about the juiciest and most delicious
committee in the House. (Apologies to my boss, Jimi Disu).
But Jibrin,
just like a goat pushed to the wall, vowed that he would not go away nicely and
quietly, because the honey has been taken from his mouth.
He came out
with his own bomb; He came out with all guns blazing, accusing Dogara himself,
and three other key officers in the House, Deputy Speaker, Hon. Yusuf Lasun,
House Whip, Hon. Alhassan Ado Doguwa, and House Minority Leader, Hon. Leo Ogor,
of conniving to 'corner' and share between themselves, a whopping N40 billion
out of the N100 billion allocated to the entire National Assembly in the 2016
budget.
And from our
records, there are about 360 members in the House and four people had earmarked
N40 billion to play with. Lord have mercy!
Jibrin also
accused the Speaker of plans to use some elements within the police to monitor,
harass, kidnap, intimidate and hound him over the recent revelations regarding
the 2016 budget padding fiasco.
He added that
his removal was over his refusal to accede to the another N30 billion to be
added for the constituency projects at the behest of Dogara and his boys, which
set him on a war path with the Speaker, culminating in his being forced to step
down.
Jibrin claims
to have enough evidence and is ready and willing to release them to the public
at the right time. We are waiting though.
But the
questions that have been begging for answers remain and they are: would Jibrin
have come out with his damning accusation if he had remained the Chairman of
the Appropriation Committee in the House?
Was he not
aware of the padding by his boss in the first place? Is he just fighting back
because he was removed from his presumed meal ticket? Did he run foul of Dogara
and his clique and was shoved aside? What would have happened if he was not sacked?
Does that mean he would have kept quiet and played along? And most importantly,
why now?
This
accusation and counter accusation lends credence to the late Abami Eda, Fela
Anikulapo-Kuti's music; 'You be tief, I no be tief. You be rogue, I no be rogue',
where two crooks are busy trading accusations.
It also goes
to confirm what former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, said in 2012, that members
of the National Assembly are all rogues and armed robbers, coming to play,
though one has to say that he helped create the monsters by doling out huge
monies to them during his ill-fated third-term bid.
But while we
await for the issue to be either overtaken by events that are sure to crop up
and conveniently forgotten, or swept under the carpet like it is wont to happen,
we have to wonder if these legislators actually have the interest of Nigerians
who voted them into power, at heart.
Do they even
have the time to, like Dogara pointed out, 'give legislative support on
important issues facing the government concerning the revival of the economy,
insecurity in the country, pursuit of anti-corruption measures, poverty
alleviation, infrastructure development?'
Do they care
about the ordinary Nigerian suffering in the midst of plenty? Do they think
about the economic hardship in the country, the horde of unemployed youths, our
young men taking to crime, our ladies selling themselves for money just so they
can survive?
Do they
bother about the decaying infrastructure in the country, the falling Naira, the
agitations in different parts of the country, the insecurity in the land, the
killings of innocent Nigerians, the death traps on our roads, the hospitals
without drugs, the failing educational system?
Do they care?
I doubt and stand to be corrected.
Source
Pulse
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