The House of Representatives on Monday defended its decision to suspend
activities of its standing and ad hoc committees, saying there was no
hidden agenda.
It also faulted its Committee on Treaties,
Protocols and Agreements for investigating the $500m loan facility
Nigeria recently secured from China, saying it had already been approved
by the National Assembly and captured in the 2020 Appropriation Act.
But
before activities of the committees were suspended on Thursday, the
Committee on Treaties, Protocols and Agreements had written the Ministry
of Transportation, demanding documents containing loan agreements with
China from 2000 to date.
Among the facilities the committee is
probing is the $500m loan secured from China-EXIM Bank to finance
railway projects under the Ministry of Transportation.
The
Peoples Democratic Party had, on Saturday, asked the Speaker of the
House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, to step aside for allegedly
frustrating investigations into executive corruption.
The party
stated this in a statement titled, ‘PDP Berates Gbajabiamila For
Frustrating Corruption Investigation in the House of Representatives …
Asks Speaker to Step Aside,’ signed by its National Publicity Secretary,
Kola Ologbondiyan.
But the Majority Leader, Alhassan
Ado-Doguwa, who is also the leader of the ruling All Progressives
Congress caucus in the House, in a statement on Monday, berated the PDP
for faulting the decision of the House to stop committees from
investigative hearings.
The statement was titled, ‘’You’re suffering from horrific political hallucinations – Doguwa replies the PDP.’
Ado-Doguwa
said, “It is at first repulsive for an opposition party, the PDP, that
has seemingly lost the actual meaning and essence of opposition, to have
brought in undue politics into a matter of national interest,
especially at the time of prevailing health and economic challenges.
“Although
one should not have glorified them with a response by wasting precious
time required for fixing the economic woes which they recklessly plunged
the country into, it has become imperative, for the sake of educating
their sympathizers, to set the record unambiguously straight.
“It
is ridiculous to discover that the PDP, a supposedly major opposition
party in the country, does not know the workings of the National
Assembly, let alone know where the constitution and the House procedures
have been breached.”
According to the lawmaker, it has never
been the practice of the House to continue with committee engagements
while on annual recess, especially with the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Ado-Doguwa
added, “It will be of interest to the PDP, the investigations the House
is currently undertaking, including the Chinese loans, cover the 16
years the PDP was in power and when most of the loans were obtained.
So, maybe they should be thanking the House leadership for covering up
their misdeeds.
We have approved $500m Chinese loan, probe not necessary – Reps
“Hence,
making reference to the recent $500m China loan by the PDP spokesman
which has already been approved by the National Assembly through a
transparent and formal request was either a deliberate misrepresentation
of facts or an utter ignorance of history.
“Therefore, it is
pertinent to know that the government has already captured the recent
loan in the 2020 appropriation law and it should not be a subject of any
controversy or query in the committee’s investigation process, at least
for now. And as a matter of norm and procedure, the House can only
wait until disbursements and utilisation commence before embarking on
oversight implementation.”
We haven’t discontinued probes – Majority leader
The
Majority Leader stated that the House had not discontinued other
investigations, including those concerning the Niger Delta Development
Commission, the Nigerian Social Insurance Trust Fund, power sector as
well as all other allegations of corruption in ministries, departments
and agencies of the Federal Government.
“All the pending investigations will continue as the House reconvenes,” he stated.
According
to the lawmaker, the House under the leadership of Gbajabiamila will
remain focused, committed and well-guided in safeguarding its
institutional integrity, “without necessarily jeopardising our good
working relationship with the Buhari-led popular government.”
Ado-Doguwa
further said, “In fact, the PDP lacks the moral standing to accuse the
leadership of the House of abetting corruption or protecting
questionable officials from the ongoing investigation. For us in the
APC, fighting the menace of corruption by prosecuting corrupt
individuals has been the cardinal objective of the President Muhammadu
Buhari administration.”
The Majority Leader stressed that the
leadership of the House had observed “the deteriorating working
relationship with the executive arm of government, which was mostly due
to misconducts and sometimes deliberate and calculated attempt by some
disgruntled government officials to drag the institution of the
legislature into needless controversies for political gains.”
According
to the lawmaker, the fact that the lawmakers are empowered by the
constitution to oversight government agencies “does not in any way mean
we should do that with injurious intentions.”
He argued that the wisdom of the oversight duties in the Constitution was “not to engage in a bickering with the executive.”
We have no plan to cover up corruption – House
The
statement further read partly, “At this point, I must also make it
clear that the House of Representatives has no clandestine plans or
motives to cover up any corrupt engagement or business of the
government. But as rational and progressive members, we are indeed
committed to our partnership with Buhari administration to fight
corruption in all ramifications, and provide good governance.
“Consequently,
it must be borne in mind that gone are those seasons when the
legislative arm of government would be stampeded or used by the
so-called opposition forces to discredit, undermine or malign our own
government.
“The steps we have taken recently are with the best
of intentions and in the best interest of the House. It is our hope that
you would continue to help to sustain the tempo so that together, we
can bring sanity and grace to the Legislature and to further salvage its
institutions. “
Panel replies Amaechi, transport ministry, demands more documents
Meanwhile,
before the leadership of the House suspended activities of the panels,
the Committee on Treaties, Protocols and Agreements had written to the
Ministry of Transportation, demanding details of Nigeria’s loan
agreements with China from 2000 to 2020.
The committee’s
chairman, Nicholas Ossai, had last week accused the Minister of
Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, of failing to provide most of the
documents requested from the ministry.
The ministry replied Ossai
in a letter dated August 18, 2020 and titled, ‘Re: Request for the
Federal Ministry of Transportation to transmit to the National Assembly
all signed bilateral loan agreements, financial investment agreements
and Other Contractual Documents between Nigeria and China Since 2000 to
Date. ‘
The letter by the Director of Legal Services for the
Ministry of Transportation, partly read, “I am directed to refer to the
proceedings at the public hearing of the committee held on Monday,
August 17, 2020, and to your consequent directives to the Federal
Ministry of Transportation to produce certain additional documents to
assist the deliberations of the committee.
“Pursuant to the
above, please find enclosed herein, the following documents for your
consideration: 3 no Volumes of list of Nigerian employees engaged on the
Lagos-Ibadan Rail Project (total 14,273)
.
“Expenses
incurred on procuring major construction materials in the local market.
Local procurement contracts (equipment and materials). Expenses
incurred on purchasing vehicles and generators in the local market.
Expenses on project insurance.,Works sub-contracted to local companies
with list of the companies.
“Copy of Addendum No. 2 in respect of
the Nigerian railway modernisation project dated 28th August 2012.
Properly witnessed copy of Addendum No. 2C (extra works to Lagos-Ibadan
segment) dated 23rd December, 2019.
“Copy of Circular No.
SGF/OP/1/S.3/X/737 dated 11th August, 2014, from the Office of the
Secretary to the Government of the Federation, titled ‘Protection of the
Federal Government and Its Corporation from Foreign Enforcement
Proceedings Arising from Contract or Arbitration in Foreign
Jurisdictions
.’
“Schedule
showing payments made thus far on the commercial agreements being
implemented by the FMOT; a soft copy (flash drive) of China-linked
project agreements being handled by the FMOT.”
Ossai had faulted the response by the ministry.
In
a letter sighted by our correspondent, the committee wrote back to the
ministry to demand more documents, which were expected to have been
submitted on Friday last week.
The letter partly read, “Specific documents request from Federal Ministry of Transportation:
“Official
documents of the power of attorney for the appointment of the
borrower’s process agent on all loan agreements as prescribed in
Appendix 7.
“Official confirmation letter by the appointed borrower’s process agents as prescribed in Appendix 8 of the loan agreements.
“Official
copies of Attorney General of the Federation(’s) authorisation of the
loan agreements. Copies of certificate of completion for completed
projects.
“A copy of Federal Government circular with Reference
Number SGF /OP/1/S.3/X/1737 dated 11th August, 2018, as sited in your
contractual document of Addendum 3.1, Page 16, under the waiver of
sovereign immunity clause and Addendum 3.2, Article 23, Page 16, etc.
“Copies
of the bill of quantity of the commercial contracts. A list details of
Nigerian employees engaged in other rail projects of the ministry. List
details of Nigerian sub-contractors engaged in new rail projects of the
ministry. Any other documents that may assist in the committee’s work.
“Please
note that you are requested to submit 30 copies of each of these
documents on each of the loan agreements to the secretariat of the
committee by Friday the 21st day of August, 2020.”
…More Reps clash over probes’ suspension
In a related development, more members of the House on Monday disagreed over the probe by the House committee.
Two
of them, Mark Gbillah (PDP) and Akin Alabi (APC), opposed themselves on
Sunrise Daily, a breakfast current affairs programme by Channels
Television.
The PUNCH had reported exclusively on Wednesday that
crisis had hit the committee, with some members aggrieved with how the
panel was handling the probe.
Gbillah said, “The main issue is
the propriety or otherwise of that instruction. The House of
Representatives is a constitutionally instituted body and it is not
under the directive of any specific individual.
“So, when you
look at that specific instruction that purportedly came from the
leadership of the House, because it was sent via a letter from the
Majority Leader, who, according to our Standing Orders, when it comes to
committees, only liaises with chairmen and deputy chairmen of
committees.”
While noting that Section 60 of the Constitution
empowers the parliament to regulate its procedures, Gbillah said, “For
the Speaker and the leadership to sit and by fiat issue a proclamation
stopping committees from acting, in my opinion, and I think in legal
parlance, the propriety of that decision is questionable because there
is no provision in our laws that allows or gives the Speaker that
power.”
Alabi, however, dismissed Gbillah’s claim as false.
According to him, it is the tradition of the House not to have committee
meetings and oversight visits during the recess.
He said, “The
leadership thought that the wisest thing was to pause for a few weeks.
We will soon get back into the House in a couple of weeks. So, there is
no point having these scattered, not-put-together committee meetings and
oversight engagements. Let us take a break, come back in September, and
we will continue from there.”
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