Budget Padding: Jibrin Spits Fire Again as He Exposes Dogara's New Plot for Survival

According to Premium Times, former chairman of the House Committee on Appropriation, Abdulmumin Jibrin yesterday, 7th of August opened up to the media once more despite efforts by the APC leadership to gag him while they broker peace between him and his former principal, Honourable Speaker, Yakubu Dogara of the House of Representatives. Jibrin who has been vehemently exposing the budget saga that heavily indicted 12 other lawmakers and principal officers in the House has alleged again that two state Governor are working secretly to save Dogara from exposure. Jibrin, a Political Scientist seems defiant in his bid to take down Dogara and his cohorts as he as sworn never to withdraw the charges against Dogara who has sworn never to resign from office despite his pressure. Mr. Jibrin returned with his attacks after briefly complying with a gag order issued by the APC on Thursday - barely three days ago - indicating that the fragile accord may have broken down.

Mr. Jibrin’s said a tentative truce prevailing on all parties to restrain from further engaging in “media war” had been breached by Mr. Dogara’s frequent public utterances, adding that the Speaker and his supporters had continued to disparaged him in the media. Although Mr. Jibrin largely complied with the order, refraining from personally commenting on the scandal on Friday and Saturday, a group in the House, opposed to the Speaker, issued a statement. Transparency Group, which styled itself as forum of 206 anti-corruption lawmakers, came down hard on Mr. Dogara, levelling fraud charges against him and demanding his resignation. Mr. Jibrin had since July 21, a day after he was removed as Chairman of House Committee on Appropriation, levelled several allegations against Mr. Dogara and more than a dozen other lawmakers, saying they fraudulently padded the budget to the tune of N40 billion. In a lengthy statement he emailed to the online news platform on Sunday evening, Mr. Jibrin said he had informed party leaders that he would not continue to take the high road and watch Mr. Dogara ridicule the party’s resolution by scaling up vicious political and media attacks against him, adding that he had warned the party of the consequences of “keeping a sealed lip” on the development.
“I called Sen. Lawal Shuaibu and complained on Thursday, Friday and Sunday. He promised to reach the Speaker. On Friday the Speaker spoke to the press after meeting the president on the matter, and they launched a massive attack on me on Saturday and today Sunday in the media, while the party is keeping a sealed lip,” Mr. Jibrin said.