•Alleges shady deals in 2012 constituency projects
From IHEANACHO NWOSU, Abuja
The Presidency may have ordered a probe of the level of implementation of the National Assembly’s N60 billion constituency projects in this year’s budget. The move might be a veiled counter by the executive to persistent allegations by the National Assembly that the former had done little to implement the 2012 capital vote.
According to findings by Sunday Sun, the recent criticisms of the National Assembly by some of President Goodluck Jonathan’s aides were based on documents at the disposal of the presidency which indicts the National Assembly members on constituency projects. Although the National Assembly members do not handle funds allocated to constituency projects, they nevertheless, influence the direction and shape of the contracts.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe and the Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Dr. Ahmed Gulag had recently flayed the National Assembly for wrongly tackling President Jonathan during the presentation of the 2013 budget. Okupe had accused the President of the Senate, Senator David Mark and the Speaker of House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, of making statements that were out of tune with realities during the budget presentation.
The two presiding officers however, took Okupe to the cleaners, warning him to stop dabbling into areas he was not competent to speak on. The Senate went further to pass a motion calling on Jonathan to caution his aides against unguarded utterances. Though President Jonathan through his Special Adviser on National Assembly Matters, Joy Emordi, distanced himself from the two aides’ criticisms, Sunday Sun gathered that they were indeed hinting of the Presidency’s planned probe of the constituency projects funds.
A source in the Presidency who pleaded anonymity said the probe would let the public know that the National Assembly was not as innocent as the controversy over the slow pace of budget implementation had tended to show. He said: “ The presidency is probing the N60billion constituency projects to tell the world the whole truth about the budget implementation which has raised so much dust”. Some of the agencies of government, he stated, had dubbed the constituency projects initiated by some of the legislators as “job for the boys,” many of which were said to have failed due process.
“The truth of the matter is that many of the projects the lawmakers are worrying about cannot be implemented. They are not well thought-out and many of them cannot pass through due process. “The tragedy of the whole issue is that the Due Process office has been bullied to stay off projects initiated by National Assembly members. So you find most of the agencies being stuck with the implementation”, the official said. Another source stated that the Due Process office has been asked to scrutinize the N60 billion constituency projects of the National Assembly members to ensure that the “job for the boys” components were removed.
He said: “Many of the Constituency projects included by the legislature are believed to be padded and may not have passed due process. The executive believed that the Due Process office was mostly intimidated to leave the scrutiny of the projects thereby leaving the budget in jeopardy. “It is not all the projects. Many Senators were known to have initiated credible projects but the questions are hanging on projects of many Federal Constituencies.
” Sources in Abuja further said that in order to forestall future occurrence, the government was contemplating a suit at the Supreme Court, where knotty issues about the functions of the National Assembly and the executive would be resolved. “A lot of distortions crop up in the budget process due largely to the misrepresentation of Section 81 of the 1999 Constitution.
The National Assembly seems to have developed the thinking that the power over appropriation lies solely with them. This is erroneous and the government may be forced to try this out in the Supreme Court”, said a source.
What do they mean by “job for the boys”? Accountability is political decency which majority of our reppresentatives lacks.GEJ has good intentions but too many mother forkers are around him. Take them to court.
I doubt the sincerity of this assemby men.
it serves them right
Its now attack me make i attack b/w executive and legislative arm of govt.
A probe i am sure will expoose those roques and arm robbers enough. Thieves in the name of legislators.
both the assembly and the executive are ‘bird of a feather’….of the two evils I will still go with the national assembly cos the executive takes decisions without thinking it through whether it will favor the masses or not.
Gej mayb ryt after all.
dats wot democracy is all about – legislature checkmating d excesses ofd executive & vice versa. i like dat bcos tru dat d masses wil enjoy d dividends of democracy.
Job for the boys indeed. the two arms will now face themselves in an unholy acusation while the masses sufer continualy
THE EXECUTIVE SHOULD GO AHEAD AND SEEK INTERPRETATION BY THE SUPREME COURT. THEY CAN NOT KEEP BUCK PASSING OF BLAMES WHEN THE MASSES ARE SUFFERING. THEY AND THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY ARE BIRDS OF THE SAME FEATHER.
The NASS shd be probed. This blame of the executive arm is too much. Let’s see who’s right aftrall. No hanky panky in the probe else the executive remains much talked abt.
The point has been made that the legislatures dont handle the money for constituency projects· They merely submit the list of the projects and where they are to be sited· So what point is the Executive trying to make if the funds for the projects which it controls are not released? In any case,
what is N60bllion compared to trilion naira budgeted for
capital projects with only about 30% executed in the last quarter of the fiscal year? This backmail wont stick.
Our present National Assembly is just a gathering of disoriented people, Vision less, fraudulent, cannibalistic old fouls whom their past are seriously dented with corrupt practices. So they have nothing to offer us. I was amused by the revelation that came from one of their own, IKE EKWERENMADU that majority of the thieving National Assembly men cannot even write their names correctly. So gentlemen, what kind of law do we expect? No wonder Nigeria is sick, and will continue to be sick unless sometime drastic is done.
GEJ, This is the journey to a year of reality hope. Let them go to hell. Do not allow self-centred senators and Rep.members tampered with BILL any longer. OBJ regime that encouraged indiscipline has gone. Majority of them are looters, they cannot invest in any business and succeed but now turn themselves to be OBLIGATED PARASITES feeding on tax-payers money, national resources meant for developments. God will punish you ALL especially saboteurs among you . Please, publish all acclaimed constituency projects and amount spent. SENATOR OLE, BARAO, 419. These set of SENATORS will not support NATIONAL CONFAB because of parochial interest.
What a dichotomy in matters pertaining the national interest!
The presidency need not prove the senators are not innocent. Nigerians know for sure the calibre of snakes disguised as lawmakers. The recent capture of a boko haram commander in the home of a serving senator should, in my opinion not come as a surprise to any.
The presidency need not prove senators are not innocent. Nigerians know for sure the calibre of snakes disguised as lawmakers. The recent capture of a boko haram commander in the home of a serving senator should, in my opinion not come as a surprise to any. All they are about is selfish enrichment.
This is balderdash! Even a primary school child can smell the pungent blackmail in this. Why were we not told about this until now when the NASS is asking questions? Also, since it is the executive who is controlling the funds, then if due process is not followed, they should blame themselves and not tell us that due process office has been intimidated. As for project execution failure, we all know for a fact that ‘he who pays the piper dictates the tune. Period!
Pls GEJ, going to Supreme court to challenge appropriation act power is long over due. I am a budget officer of an MDA and have been involved in the preparation and defense of our budget in the NASS so I speak with fact. Those boys are thieves. All MDA’s budget sent to them are altered by them to make way for their own projects not designed or scoped with a whooping sum. Infact if you make noise they will tell you that appropriation is their function so they are empowered to add or remove. Pls GEJ seek for interpretation whether these thieves have power to add or remove anything from the budget submitted to them. This will go a long way to save this nation.
Both the nas and mr freshair are guilty
It’s now a question of d kettle calin d pot black. So, if responsibility’s about accountability, it follows dat d same measure of judgmnt be used 4 all. Let there b no sacred cow(s).Dats d folly in Democracy. Rite time for Theocracy. PERIOD!
After going through most of the comments i saw that our guys are so blind that they cannot see the reality. why are we after NASS, they are doing their job, we should praise them and see what comes next, if is not good job been done the Presidency will not fight back, no one fight when he or she is not felt hurt or exposed. Let the fight go on and the masses will enjoy Democracy, the Presidency is as bad as any other thing in Nigeria, if the head is good the body must be. When the head lead by example every other blanch will join him but if he thinks is the BOSS and want others to do the other way, they saw how he handle the country and they join his ideas of leadership. Let him tell us who voted him their if he believed that we did the truth, they never fight before until now, when OBJ wanted to make himself a life President it was the same NASS that stopped him so how do you think he will call them good names, when things is not the way the executive want it they use blackmail, what is 60billion? that all of you are commenting when the President think that we should not know what he has as our leader. In a through democracy none of this group should have been involved in any project as it is not their field but Presidency use it to settle them in other to have his way, now that the settlement is not good enough he want to tell us that they are thieves. My brothers in NASS keep fighting for Nigerian and try to clean up your tricks more attacks is coming your way but I thank God for your leaders David Mark, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal
wat is d problem of these our National Asembly Members , they shd allow Pres. Jonathan to be focused n face terorism n flood n oda national issues of importance cos they r crooks. Most of them were Govs, L.G chairman etc, wat did they do to show 4 all d monies dat were sent to them.
Who is talking about probe. The National Assemble are no fools. They know very well that Mr president lack the charisma. His spirit may be willing, it’s a pity his body is weak. But who even made us the judge?
I am beginning to believe seriously that the President Jonathan’s government is really out for transformation.
why do this people always call the masses who elected them into power Fools, well only God can judge them and give them what they expect. This leaders have no human mind. They are wicked
A Good branded Name Affordable Tablet PC Device that can perform unimaginable functions,3G World Phone & Computer Video Calling, Internet Browsing Android OS, V2.2 Double Camera, Wifi, Bluetooth Download over 1Million Android app RAM 512MB Micro SD Exp. Up to 16GB NAND Flash 512 mb Watch Online Video & News GPRS Read new from popular News Papers Like THE SUN NEWS PAPER Watch Movies, Watch up to 150 Satelite TV Channels , Use Navigation to find address locations Free Calling – make voice calls for free with SKYPE Create and view word, excel, power point and PDF files It’s Router capability allows Internet connectivity to be shared wirelessly to users Works with every GSM NETWORK WORLDWIDE, Call.zero.eight.zero.three.four.zero.three.three.six.seven.four.
job for the boys Wat is the mean of that is that the money given to them to make there road or build schools in there area wicked people i knew that GEJ is ready to transformation Nigeria but he is not seriously in action