N628m scam: Speaker, deputy face probe

The House of Representatives on Wednesday set up a nine-member panel to probe the N628m contract scandal involving the Speaker, Mrs. Patricia Etteh, and her deputy, Alhaji Babangida Nguroje.

The panel, whose members were drawn from the three leading political parties in the House, has two weeks to submit its report.It is headed by Mr. David Idoko, a Peoples Democratic Party lawmaker.Other PDP members on the panel are Messrs Rabe Nasir, Chinedu Eluemuno, Peter Umoh, Depo Oyedokun and Yakubu Dogara.

The All Nigeria Peoples Party has two members on the committee while the Action Congress has one. The ANPP members are Alhaji Nasiru Mohammed and Alhaji Saleh Minjibir.

Mr. Habeeb Fashinro is the AC lawmaker in the committee.

The Chairman of the House Committee on Business and Rules, Mr. Ita Enang, and his counterpart in charge of Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Eziuche Ubani, said the panel would sit in public. Enang, however, said that security matters could force the panel to sit in camera.

Etteh, shortly after announcing the panel members as submitted to her by the parties, gave two terms of reference to the committee. The terms are to examine the totality of the award of the contract; and the contract for the purchase of 10 units of vehicles for the principal officers of the House.

The Speaker advised the panel to confine itself strictly to the terms. Before the panel members were announced, Etteh protested that no woman was on the list. But she was countered by Mrs. Binta Garba, who said that she was not worried by the non-representation of women in the panel.

The AC Leader, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, had cited Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution to counter the position of the Speaker, but he was not recognised to speak. Etteh, in her brief remarks, said she was aware of the media reports on the scandal and the interest the public had shown in it.

She explained that her position on the matter was contained in her written address, which the rowdy session on Tuesday did not allow her to read. Etteh said, “We resumed on Tuesday. Honestly speaking, I am aware of what is on the ground. It will be insensitive of me to bring the House into disrepute. I know I am thoroughly involved.”

The decision to investigate the scandal followed a point of order raised by the Minority and ANPP Leader in the House, Alhaji Mohammed Ndume. Ndume’s point of order 5 (1) b, states, “Whenever a matter of privilege arises, it shall be taken into consideration immediately.”

He also cited subsection 5 of the same order, which empowers any member of the House who had complaints to make about media reports or publication on the House to do so. The lawmaker added that the media were awash with reports on the contract scandal.

Ndume said, “As all of us are aware, there have been serious publications in the media that have caused embarrassment to the House members and particularly to myself.

“Madam Speaker, your integrity and that of the House is at stake, and the matter is now in the public eye.
“I feel that it is a responsibility on you and the House to immediately set up an independent committee, I insist, an independent committee, to investigate this matter.
“We feel that the Ethics Committee of the House should not be given this responsibility of investigating the case.”

The legislator noted that the Speaker stood to be either cleared or indicted by the panel, and advised her to step aside for the probe to be carried out.

“All Nigerians are waiting for this investigation and we should do it thoroughly,” he said.

Mr. Independence Ogunewe, in his contribution, aligned with Ndume’s submission on the need to investigate the scam. But he rejected the suggestion that Etteh should step aside. According to him, Etteh had not been found guilty and, therefore, it was needless to ask her to step aside.

He enjoined the House to adhere to due process in carrying out the investigation. Ogunewe said, “I very much agree that the mood of the House is that there should be an enquiry. The issues raised still remain allegations.

“The House is the custodian of democracy and democracy is about the rule of law. Fairness should be given the other side to state its case.” According to him, it is “preposterous to ask the Speaker to step aside because we have not found her guilty.

“I agree with the ANPP leader that this committee should be independent. So, if we agree that it should be independent. I think the next step will be how to constitute the committee.” Another member, Dr. M Abdul, an ANPP member, said that his colleagues were worried by the gravity of the allegations.

“It is very important that we establish the facts because we came from excellent backgrounds and we don’t want to destroy the future of our children,” Abdul said. He quoted an adage which says, “If wealth is lost, nothing is lost, but if character is lost, everything is lost.”

A member of the Integrity Group, Dr. Ahmed Salik, disclosed to newsmen that lawmakers held a marathon meeting on Tuesday night on how to constitute the committee. He said that it was at the meeting that they conceded to Etteh, the right to appoint the chairman of the committee.

Other lawmakers, who expressed satisfaction with the way the panel was set up include, the Leader of the group, Mr. Farouk Lawan.

The point of order raised by a member of the New Agenda Group, Mr. Emmanuel Jimeh’ when the Speaker had not concluded matters on Ndume’s Order 5 and related issues almost caused a stir. Gbajabiamila had nominated himself as the AC member of the panel, but his colleagues objected.

They said that the entire leadership of the House was being investigated.

Meanwhile, the President of the Senate, Senator David Mark, has appealed for caution by the members of the House in handling the contract scam. Mark, in his address of welcome to senators after their recess, said that due process should be followed before passing a verdict.

He said, “Within our vicinity, there is a controversy surrounding the renovation of the residence of the Hon. Speaker and that of the Deputy Speaker. As usual, the matter is already in the public domain.”

The President of the Senate said since the matter posed varied challenges to the legislature, its members were required to rise to the occasion by being prepared to handle the issue alongside other legislative duties.

Also on Wednesday, the Governor of Benue State, Mr. Gabriel Suswan, expressed fear that the scandal may have retarded the progress made in the last eight years.

Fielding questions from newsmen at the Presidential Wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, Suswan said that he was surprised that the leadership of the House could allow money to tear them apart.

The governor said, “What we would have expected is that they would have settled down. It is unfortunate that they are starting on that note.
“I find it quite unfortunate that it borders on money. I do believe and hope that they will get to the bottom of it and get out of it quickly so that they can settle down.”

4rum Punch Newspapers

Mrs Etteh's mess

By Hope Eghagha

IN spite of the angry mood of the nation and the so-called 'zero tolerance to corruption' stance of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, the first female Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mrs . Patricia Etteh is currently embroiled in a messy deal that could cost her the glamour of being the first person of the fair gender to occupy the Number Three position in the political hierarchy of the Nigerian government. As a professional hairdresser, a profession in which the practitioner is fascinated with making women (and men) look beautiful she is accused of dressing up the cost of renovating her official residence in Abuja.

Specifically it is reported that Mrs. Etteh spent the sum of N628 million to renovate the official residences of the Speaker and her deputy. Some of her colleagues are up in arms against her. Some have called on her to step aside while an investigation is on. The PDP seems to be interested in patching things up 'as a family matter'. It might be interesting to know how much it cost to put up the building in the first place. It would also be interesting to know how the information got into the public domain. Have we advanced to a stage where all such anomalies manage to get to the public? Is Mrs. Etteh an unusual person in the present dispensation? In other words is she the only public official who spends state funds in a reckless manner? Why were there no official checks and balances in the National Assembly financial system to prevent her from wasting such funds? Is the situation any better in the Senate?

It would seem to me that Mrs. Etteh's greatest offence is being caught. As we know and as most of the hypocrites in the National Assembly who are calling for her head also know, inflating the cost of transaction is almost an accepted norm. Too many terrible things are going on with state funds across the country that Mrs Etteh's mess can be considered a storm in a tea cup. Sadly it is not a storm in a tea cup. It is an indication that nothing has indeed changed. The pressure to steal to see government appointments as a means of making it in life is still predominant. If we investigate the matter properly, we would find that some of the legislators who have been vociferous against the Speaker have continued to spend millions on travelling allowances, they still insist on settlement each time they visit parastatals under their watch, and even fabricate reasons to embark on trips at the expense of the public. It is still the culture for office holders to create opportunities for making money by creating assignments for themselves.

Our social values have remained warped. They will not change overnight. Else how do we account for the sudden riches phenomenon in the land? Newly appointed state officials are still swimming in ill-gotten wealth. The people have not been empowered and have not empowered themselves to challenge their leaders when they live above their means. This for me is the real issue. What mass oriented structures are in place to check the excesses of the leaders in the country? Until the ballot box is restored as the true determinant of who gets into power the Mrs Ettehs will grow in umber.

Mrs Etteh appears to me as a woman who woke up from sleep and found herself in the opulence of a five star hotel and did not know how to use the wash hand basin. The bathroom was too neat for the back yard business and so she decided to use the bush. As Speaker it is my view that she did not need to have degenerated into the roadside motor mechanic culture of inflating the cost of everything. We demand a modicum of self respect in office holders. Public office should be about the panache of it. It should be concerned with legacies. Mrs Etteh ought to step aside honourably while investigation is being carried out. The PDP should not attempt a cover up. There are attempts by her initial sponsors to save her job. What is more important: Mrs Etteh's job or the health of the nation? I call on honourable members of the House to take a bold step and do the right thing. It must be particularly nauseating to other members of the House that while the official policy of ne official residence for legislators have left them roaming, their leader has spent millions in renovating an apartment. There should be no sentiments whatsoever.

The Nigerian people are watching. This is how they watched and wrote off the Obasanjo administration as a house of hypocritical protestations and sanctimonious mendacity. This was how the last National Assembly first gave itself a bad name. Are we going to witness a repeat of history? Already, the perception is that the current National Assembly lacks the verve of the previous one. Ken Nnamani carried himself well and piloted the affairs of the Senate with equanimity. The antecedents of the incumbent Senate President make him a liability. As far as I know he has not purged himself nor has he apologised to the nation about the 'telephone-not-for-the-poor' misadventure. As long as we have persons who do not have sense of history in power this nation would always be dragged to the mud.

If we are to be taken seriously we need to take ourselves seriously. Suddenly there is a lull in the trial of former governors who were arrested and brought to trial on charges of corruption. Some of the extremely corrupt ones still jet in and out of Nigeria as free men. If President Yar Adua allows the instrument of the state to protect powerful individuals it would be tragic. The governors' trial ought to be concluded within the ambit of the law for the present government to lay any claim to rule of law.

Mrs Patricia Olubunmi Etteh should step aside while a proper investigation is conducted. It is important for her name to be cleared, not for her deeds to be covered up. That way the rest public officers would learn that the culture of frivolous spending or stealing millions of naira in the guise of doing official work is over. All educated and enlightened people across the country should impress it on their representatives in the House of Representatives that they should do the right thing. It is the beginning of another round struggle. Subsequently we shall take on local government chairmen and other officials whose activities impact directly on the lives of millions. The stakes are too high to be left in the hands of a few greedy individuals.

4rum The Guardian Newspapers

Mapo Hall: Ibadan indigenes oppose inauguration by Obasanjo

The embattled Ibadan politician, Chief Lamidi Adedibu, is set for another collision course with the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Samuel Odulana, and members of the Olubadan-in-council over Thursday’s (today) inauguration of renovated Mapo Hall. The development came just as the Central Council of Ibadan Indigenes kicked against the planned inauguration of Mapo Hall by former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

The renovation of the ancient hall, built over a century ago, was carried out by HUA Engineering Limited, a company in which Adedibu has a substantial interest.

The project was bankrolled by the 11 local governments in Ibadanland and the state government.

It was gathered that Adedibu was instrumental to the invitation of Obasanjo to Ibadan to inaugurate the edifice, which the state Governor, Chief Adebayo Alao-Akala, had listed as one of his achievements.

Sources said that the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, was listed as the royal father of the day.

The Olubadan-in-council and key Ibadan leaders were said to have regarded the development as an affront on their monarch, whose forebears symbolised the Mapo hall.

Sources told our correspondent that the indigenes have made up their mind not to attend the ceremony.

Our correspondent learnt that the Olubadan had directed members of his council to distance themselves from the ceremony or risk being sanctioned.

To underscore this, a statement by the CCII on Wednesday had opposed the choice of Obasanjo for the inauguration.

The statement by the National Secretary of the CCII, Chief Gbade Isola, described the hall as the property of the 11 local government areas in Ibadanland, over which the Olubadan was the president.

Reacting, Special Adviser to the Governor on Public Communication, Mr. Dotun Oyelade, said the inauguration was beyond partisan politics, but should attract wider interest of all Yoruba sons and daughters.

He said, “We should not make the historical mistake of under-rating the universal importance of Mapo hall that was built almost a century ago and celebrating such an important edifice should attract wider interest that goes beyond partisanship.

4rum Punch Newspapers

Yar'Adua rides high in opinion poll

PRESIDENT Umaru Musa Yar' Adua's performance in office, in the last 100 days has been given the thumbs up by a majority of Nigerians.

The verdict is the result of a recent Guardian Opinion Poll (GOP) conducted in all the six geo-political zones of the country. The survey, which accommodated responses from Nigerians above 18 years had asked: "Are you satisfied with the performance of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua' s government in the past 100 days?"

According to the result, eight out of every 10 respondents (approximately 79 per cent) answered in the affirmative, while two out of 10 (21 per cent) disagreed.

The favourable rating of the President cuts across the six geo-political zones of the country. The North West led with 87 per cent; North-East, South-West, South-East, North-Central and South-South recorded 84, 80,79,76 and 73 respectively while Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory returned 68 per cent.

The spread of the 21 per cent of respondents who rate the President's performance low cuts across all the geo-political zones. Twenty-seven per cent, which is the highest in this category, was recorded in the South South while North Central turned in 24 per cent. South East, South West, North East and North West also scored the administration low with 21, 20, 16 and 13 per cent respectively. Abuja also polled 32 per cent.

About 53 per cent of those who gave pass mark to the president argued that he has so far shown that he is a listening and responsive president; especially in the way and manner he reversed the Value Added Tax (VAT) and fuel price increases in the wake of mass protest.

Another 22 per cent reasoned that the government has displayed high level of transparency, while 11 per cent agreed that his respect for the rule of law so far is second to none in the history of leadership in Nigeria.

However, a majority of those who gave an "unsatisfactory" answer (58 per cent) argued that there were no tangible achievements on the part of government for now. To them, the country's schools, hospitals and infrastructure are still in deplorable conditions, with the crime rate still alarming and nothing seems to be working for now.

Twenty-two per cent of the respondent also posited that it is too early to rate the government as it is just settling down for the business of governance.

Some who queried the legitimacy of the government argued that the elections that brought President Yar'Adua into office was far from perfect as attested to by the President himself. It was also alleged that the president displayed a high level of tribalism and nepotism in the area of political appointments.

When Yar'Adua was sworn in as president on May 29, 2007, he promised to be a servant-leader with the basic aim of rendering selfless service to Nigerians.

4rum The Guardian Newspapers.

Weekly Discussion - The New Naira Policy Especially the Naira Re-denomination

The new ‘Strategic Agenda for the Naira’ announced by the Central Bank of Nigeria on August 14, 2007 is generating a healthy national debate.

The CBN announced a 4- point agenda designed to make the Naira the “Reference Currency in Africa”, as part of the Financial System Strategy 2020 (FSS2020) and the elements of the agenda are:

How will it work?
The question is who will benefit from this new policy. Some people say it is the Banks if for example your account balance reads - N11,000.89k or N99.99k the banks in their rounding up will swallow up the kobo that you have and so if they do that for more than a million accounts its up to you to calculate the gain. So feel free and comment on this.

Currency Re-Denomination
Adoption of Inflation-Targeting Framework for the conduct of monetary policy
Sharing part of the Federation Account funds in US Dollars to Deepen the Forex Market and for Liquidity Management
Current Account liberalization/convertibility and accession to Article VIII of the IMF
The CBN recently released FAQs and attempted to clarify some issues raised in reaction to the New Naira Policy.

How will the Naira be redenominated?
It is by dropping two zeros from the currency or moving two decimal places to the left. The name of the national currency will still be the Naira. However, during the transition period, the existing Naira will be referred to as the “Old Naira”, and the new one to be called the “New Naira”. After the transition period, the word “New” may be dropped. F

The ‘new Naira’ coins and notes will be different from the existing ones i.e. in design, appearance, security features, etc.

All Naira assets and liabilities (including bank deposits), prices, fees, rents, and contracts (including salaries and wages) will be re-denominated by dropping two zeroes or moving two decimal points to the left.
During the ‘transition period’ prices will be quoted in both the ‘new Naira’ and the ‘Old Naira’ and everyone will choose whether to pay in the new or old Naira. These five months will be allowed so that everyone will get familiar with the conversion, and it will become self-evident to everyone why he/she would prefer to transact in the ‘new Naira’ rather than the ‘old Naira’. For example, if a bag of garri sells for N2,000 (old Naira), the price in ‘new Naira’ will automatically be N20. The customer will choose to pay either N2000 in old Naira or N20 in the ‘new Naira’. In the supermarkets and formal markets, prices will be displayed in both ‘old’ and ‘new’ Naira. In the informal markets where prices are negotiated, the negotiation could be done in the ‘old Naira’ as usual and converted into the ‘new Naira’ if the customer wishes to pay with the ‘new Naira’. This will ensure that prices do not rise due to rounding-up. The five months are also needed for everyone (formal and informal sectors) to become fully familiar with the conversion. It will become obvious to everyone that N50,000 of the ‘old Naira’ has the same purchasing power as N500 of the ‘new Naira’. The question then would be: why carry N50,000 of old Naira when N500 of the new Naira will buy you the same thing? Consequently, if you have N50,000 in your bank account, it will automatically become N500 in the ‘new Naira’ i.e. if you want to withdraw in the ‘new Naira’ or you can still withdraw N50,000 in ‘old Naira’ during the transition period (August- December 2008). Similarly, someone whose monthly salary is N50,000 can choose (during the transition period) whether to withdraw and spend the N50,000 in ‘old Naira’ or N500 in the ‘new Naira’. Both would buy him/her the same value of goods and services.

For more information look for the favorite Site section of this blog, or visit the following site:

http://www.cenbank.org/redenomination/newpolicy.asp

Nigeria: I Don't Read Local Newspapers -OBJ

A FOMER President Olusegun Obasanjo, Sunday night, told the Mayor of Detroit, Michigan, United States, Kwame Mkilpatrick and hundreds of Nigerians that he no longer reads "Nigerian newspapers" because they are fond of writing all manner of things about him to attract sales.
Obasanjo spoke at the Ogun State Awards Night where our State Correspondent, Champion's Kola Adepoju, who was nominated for the State Media Person of the Year award emerged second runner-up.

Speaking shortly after he received the Ogun State Lifetime Achievement award, Obasanjo who was flanked by Gov. Gbenga Daniel and Mkilpatrick directed his gaze at the mayor and said "some people are worried about me because they said our media have been unfair to me".

Obasanjo, still looking at the mayor as if reporting the Nigerian press to him said: "I don't read Nigerian newspapers because they are fond of publishing all manner of things about me so as to sell their newspapers," adding however, that "that is better than being crucified"

Consequently, Obasanjo in his usual humour declared that may be he would ask his lawyer to institute a legal action that would make him collect 10 per cent from any newspaper using him to attract sales.

He described the award as "a good recognition for commitment and devotion to professionalism and services".Adepoju who was one of the three "media persons" nominated for the media person of the Year Award emerged second runner up to Bunmi Ayelagbe and Miss Doyin Lasisi both of Gateway Radio.

Nigeria: PH - Troops May Remain Beyond 6 Months

The deployment of troops in Port Harcourt, the troubled capital city of Rivers State, may go beyond the initial six-month projection, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt General Luka Yusuf, disclosed yesterday.

The Army chief said the decision to withdraw the troops would be taken in conjunction with the governor of the state, Sir Celestine Omehia.

This is coming on the heels of the state government's condemnation of the call by some Ijaw leaders for a state of emergency to be imposed on the state.

Soldiers, who were deployed in the city following weeks of shootings and gun battles between suspected cult groups, are not guaranteed to leave after the initial period of six months, although Omehia said at the weekend that the soldiers would be in the city for that period.

Yusuf made the announcement while briefing the Minister of Defence, Alhaji Ahmed Yayale who was on a working visit of the Army, Navy and Airforce.

He said if the governor, as the chief security officer, "feels that the security situation has improved he will ask for the pulling out of the solders to the barracks".

He said the Army would not flood troops to Port Harcourt so as not to create the impression of a state of emergency there. Yusuf lamented that even though the police were saddled with the responsibility of internal security, "the Army is now taking a very big chunk of it even without being supported with additional logistics".

The army chief informed that the Army was now fully involved in internal security as part of their assistance to civil authority. He disclosed that most of the soldiers in Operation Restore Hope were being moved to support the ongoing operation in Port Harcourt "until peace returns".

Most of the serviceable boats are being moved from Calabar to Port Harcourt to support the operation to block the creeks to prevent the militants from infiltrating the state capital, he disclosed, revealing that more operational vehicles and Armoured Personnel Carrier (APCS) were being moved to Port Harcourt because "it will take time to restore hope and return things to normalcy in the region".Yusuf, however, charged the political class to do their own beat insisting some of the crisis had political undertone.

Nigerian Troops Battle Gangs in Oil City

Nigerian troops and gangsters fought gun battles in the oil city of Port Harcourt on Thursday, killing several people, army and private security sources said. The army launched a dawn raid on several criminal hide-outs after six days of street battles between rival gangs last week, and the gangs responded by staging an armed assault on the state government headquarters in the centre of town.

"It is mayhem here. There is a gun battle outside government house right now," said a private security source, who is not allowed to talk to the media.

A resident of Port Harcourt's old district of Borokiri said he heard intense gunfire in the area all morning."A group of men drove past my house waving guns and blood-stained knives while a helicopter gunship hovered overhead shooting," he said.

Rival gangs fought street battles for six days last week in a turf war that killed at least a dozen people and shut down most commercial activity in the sprawling, industrial city. The fighting had stopped since Sunday.

"This morning we launched an operation aimed at flushing out the bad boys who have regrouped within the city," said Sagir Musa, spokesman for the Joint Task Force, a military unit responsible for security in the oil producing Niger Delta.

"We attacked them by surprise. They responded and there was some resistance but we have broken them. We arrested some of them and killed some," he said, declining to give numbers.
Violence in Nigeria's oil heartland surged early last year when armed groups protesting against neglect and corruption in the impoverished delta started blowing up pipelines and oil wells and kidnapping foreign oil workers.

CRIME WAVE
Their attacks shut down at least a fifth of crude output from Nigeria, the world's eighth biggest exporter, pushing up oil prices on international markets and forcing thousands of foreigners to leave the delta.

But over time the violence shifted from targeted attacks on the oil industry into a crime wave. Hundreds of kidnappings for ransom have taken place as well as armed robberies and deadly gang wars. Aid group Doctors Without Borders said its Port Harcourt trauma centre admitted 71 gunshot victims in two weeks.

The army has blamed two rival militia leaders, Ateke Tom and Soboma George, for last week's fighting.But human rights activists have said that like many militias in the delta, these men were at various times sponsored by politicians who used them to rig elections or scare opponents.

Nigeria: Contract Scam Rocks Reps

A major crisis is brewing in the House of Representatives over the award of N628milion contract by Speaker Patricia Etteh to renovate her official residence and that of her deputy, Hon Babangida Nguroje.

The controversial renovation contract was blown open last weekend, just as spirited efforts made by some federal lawmakers to deny celebration of Etteh's birthday in Maryland, United States of America [USA] drew the ire of chairman of Air Force committee, Hon Halims Agoda, who vowed to instigate a probe into the mode of the contract.

Spokesman of the House, Hon Dino Malaiye had last week denied the birthday ceremony and justified the contract, saying that it passed through the normal process and with the knowledge of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua.

He said N238.8 milion was spent on the renovation of the speaker's residence. Insisting that he would call for a probe into the contract, Agoda said that there was no way the president would get himself involved in such a frivolity he vowed yesterday to pursue the matter to a logical conclusion when the House resumes early next month from its- seven weeks recess.

"I read it as part of the report that the president of the country is aware of the approval of the contract. That is arrant nonsense. The President of a country has no right to approve whatever thing that comes to the National Assembly. The President cannot dabble into our pool. What the President normally does is to direct the release of our money, not to get himself involved in the approval of item by item." Agoda said that the Etteh leadership faced a moral burden to defend using N628milion to renovate a building that was renovated two years ago in an administration that preaches transparency and accountability, adding that the building was owned by the FCDA and not property of the National Assembly.

To salvage the image of the House that has been battered, Agoda vowed that the award of the contracts would be probed when the House resumes from its holiday, insisting that it was wrong on the part of the leadership to spend the money belonging to the House without due process. "Some of us will take the gauntlet to fight for the investigation of that publication, because in the first place, using N628m to renovate a standing house is unbelievable even if you are to build a new house, must it consume such a whopping sum of amount?

"I read too that the money was attached to capital votes, now, I am aware that when we were passing the capital votes, the capital votes of the House of Reps were tied to specific headings and if this money is to be swapped from one heading to another, it must be through virement and no virement whatsoever has been made."

Agoda also faulted the process the contract went through, saying that a contract of such magnitude should be published in journals and not on the notice board of the National Assembly as done by the management.

"It is not a contract of N10 million, so, I am deeply surprised that it's happening in an era of transparency and accountability. So I still believe that it is not correct. We have a moral crisis if the issue is true, we will call for investigation. I have been here, we built this House of Reps with all our efforts and so, nobody will come here and pull it down," he pointed out.

Agoda said that for Madam Speaker to take her birthday bash to the US was uncalled for at a time the nation was settling down, adding that the nation was blessed with leisure places such as Obudu Cattle Ranch, Mambilla Plateau to have such a party.

Instead of engaging in frivolities, Agoda advised Speaker Etteh to re-order her priorities so that she could build on the solid foundation laid by her predecessors, Na'Abba and Masari. Etteh presided over a 40 minutes meeting of the management of the House on July 12, 2007 to award the contract for the renovation of her official residence and that of her deputy and the purchasing of vehicles on their convoy.At the meeting with the Speaker and her deputy were the Chief Whip, Deputy Leader, Chairman of Ad-hoc committee on Welfare, who is now Chairman of Appropriation Committee, Wale Adegoke, Clerk of the National Assembly, Ibrahim Arab, his deputy, Acting Clerk of the House, Directors of Works, Legal Services, Finance and Supplies.

Was Obasanjo born by an Igbo father?

Was Obasanjo born by an Igbo father?

A B The personality in picture A is not former president Olusegun Obasanjo who is in picture B. But what do both personalities have in common? The man in picture A was an Igbo who lived in the Abeokuta area of Ogun State in the 1930s about when the former president was born. He was a police officer who later became a monarch on a prominent south-eastern throne. But before leaving the south-west, he interacted fruitfully with the local community and had a brief affair with an Owu lady. COULD THIS BE THE MAIN REASON WHY OBJ KEPT FAITH WITH THE UBA'S

Source: The Nation Newspapers