Very few Nigerians will be amazed by the way the House
of Representatives handled the allegations of budget padding and abuse
of office which Abdulmumin Jibrin, former Chair on Appropriation,
levelled against a fraction of the House leadership including the
Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, Deputy Speaker, Yusuf Lasun, Minority Leader,
Leo Ogor, Chief Whip, Alhassan Ado Doguwa, as well as 10 other members
of the House. To ensure that the issue remains on the plate, Jibrin has
been consistent in issuing statements through both the traditional and
new media which clearly identify Dogara, Lasun, Ogor and Doguwa as the
main targets of his charge. And to press the point, he rightly labeled
the clique the QUARTET.
But even in this atmosphere of suffocating change, nothing seems to
have changed in the National Assembly, at least not in the House of
Reps. Instead of investigating his allegations, the House in its
typical, ever-evolving Machiavellian antics that the Nigerian populace
has witnessed since the beginning of the Fourth Republic, presented a
dubious resolution summoning Jibrin, himself the hunter as Professor
Olatunji Dare, the ace satirist, would have characteristically put it,
to appear before an ethics and privileges committee. Talk of the hunter
being hunted. It’s as if there are no more people with conscience in the
green chamber.
And the “honourables” scheming to nail Jibrin at all cost executed
their act with a well-choreographed carnival-like fanfare, prancing
about the floor without shame, hugging and back-slapping, each
brandishing green scarves with the inscription: I Stand with Dogara. In
the end, what ought to be a solemn occasion for demanding answers to the
issues raised by Jibrin in the interest of public good, was turned into
a grand spectacle of pure self-service and reckless endorsement of
corruption.
Though originally well-spoken of by the public, the lawmakers by
determinedly choosing the option of closing their eyes to the accused
and turning the heat on the accuser shot themselves in the foot. That
ugly display on the floor of the House has further reduced their worth
in the eyes of the people.
And Dogara should know better. An experienced lawyer that he is, the
Speaker knows the meaning of the well-worn Latin phrase deployed in the
second leg of the title of this piece. Translated in English it means
that, “No one should be a judge in his own cause.” It’s a legal
principle that forbids any person from assuming the role of a judge in a
case in which he/she has an interest. In this particular case of budget
padding and corruption in the House, Dogara, the Speaker of the House
is one of the accused persons; to that extent, he is an interested
party.
If the House must then investigate as it should the allegations
against him and others, the logical step to take is for him to step down
from his position as Speaker and allow for a colleague to be elected as
Speaker for the purpose of presiding over the investigation. If at the
end of investigation he is acquitted he returns to his seat as Speaker.
It’s such a simple process that anyone who is not aiming at covering up
would easily accede to in order to preserve honour and integrity. But by
refusing to step down and subject himself to investigation, the Speaker
leaves one with no other option than to deduce that he has something to
hide or, at best, that he is indeed guilty of the allegations against
him.
Anyone would be forgiven for drawing this conclusion, given the
desperation with which Dogara exploited his position as Speaker to
finagle a resolution of the House glossing over the budget fraud and
corruption allegations involving him, and instead recommending his
accuser for a most ridiculous trial for all kinds reasons including
“campaign of calumny and infringing on the integrity of the House as an
institution.”
But rather than denigrate the House of which he is a proud member as
claimed by his traducers, the former chairman of appropriation merely
stated the facts. And countless times he has challenged any member of
the House who has evidence of malfeasance, corruption or abuse of office
involving him to make them public. Up till the time of writing this
piece, no one has picked up the gauntlet.
In fact, the Speaker being one of the accused worsened his case with
the clear violation of a sacred legal maxim through that House
resolution presided over by him, and directing his accuser to appear
before an ethics and privileges committee made up of members appointed
by him. There can be no better example of sitting as a judge in your own
cause. This is against the principle of natural justice, equity and
good conscience.
Besides, there is no way Jibrin will not be found guilty if he
appears before the committee headed by Nicholas Ossai, who on July 26
told Premium Times that it was wrong for Jibrin to claim that the 2016
budget was “padded.” According to the report, Ossai said the budget was
only “amended.” He was also quoted as saying, “In legislature, you don’t
talk about padding. Budget is an appropriation bill and is like other
bills that you amend. You know in bills you talk about clauses. Every
head in the budget is a clause. So, legislators have power to amend it.”
How would he now get justice before a man who has made this one-sided
statement?
Still, this country has Jibrin to thank for his unprecedented
revelations. Now, the depth of the rot in the House of Reps is in the
open. Rather than applaud and encourage those working to crucify him, it
will serve this country well to focus on his message and squeeze
adjustments from it. It is the way to go if Nigeria is serious about
entrenching transparency and accountability in public governance.
Godwin Onyeacholem is a journalist. He can be reached on gonyeacholem@gmail.com
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