The House of Representatives said on Sunday that it would appeal the judgment of an Abuja Federal High Court, which forbade it from summoning the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke.
Alison Madueke
In a judgement given on Wednesday last week, the presiding judge, Justice Ahmed Mohammed, also halted the House’s probe of the N10billion the minister reportedly spent on maintaining a private jet, Challenger 850, for her trips.
The judge held that the summons of the House to the minister to answer questions on the jet was “invalid” on the grounds that the House resolution was neither published in the journal of the National Assembly nor in the official Gazette of the Federal Government.
But, House spokesman, Mr. Zakari Mohamme, said in Abuja that the last had not been heard of the face-off between the House and the oil minister.
He disclosed that lawyers to the House were reviewing the decision of the court and would enter the appropriate appeal against the judgment.
Mohammed said he would not speak further so that his comments would not jeopardise the appeal being prepared by the lawmakers.
“There is a possibility that our lawyers will appeal the judgment and whatever I say could be considered as prejudice,” he added.
Abuja – The House of Representatives on Wednesday directed its Committee on Ethics and Privileges to probe 50,000 dollars bribe allegedly offered the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmakers in the house.
Rep. Aliyu Madaki (APC-Kano) on Tuesday alleged that PDP members were offered the bribe.
The member said that it was to kill a motion to probe the 9.3 million dollars seized by the South African authorities from three Nigerians and an Isreali.
Responding to Madaki’s allegation, the Deputy Speaker, Emeka Ihedioha, said that Madaki would appear before the Ethic and Privileges Committee to prove his allegation.
Ihedioha, who described Madaki’s allegation as “grievous and regrettable”, said he (Madaki) risked suspension if he failed to prove the allegation.
“This matter is referred to the House Committee on Ethics and Privileges for investigation and to report back in two weeks,” Ihedioha stated.
A motion to probe the incident on Tuesday was voted out without debate.
This development caused APC lawmakers to walk out during the plenary.
A Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday ordered the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar, to jettison any directive by the National Assembly that the Minister of Petroleum, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, should be arrested for her alleged involvement in the N10bn jet scandal probe.
Diezani-Alison Madueke
Some officials of the ministry and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation are also protected by the court order.
Justice Gabriel Kolawole made the order while ruling on an application by Alison-Madueke’s lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), who had sought the order in view of the threat by the House of Representatives to order the arrest of the minister and other officials.
Justice Ahmed Mohammed of the Federal High Court in Abuja had also on June 19, made an order restraining the House of Representatives from going ahead with the probe.
The order of the court is to subsist till July 3 when the court will hear a separate suit filed by Alison-Madueke along with her ministry and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.
Justice Ahmed Mohammed gave the order ahead of the plan by the House Committee on Public Accounts to carry out the probe on June 25, 26 and 27, 2014.
In the second suit seeking an order stopping the House of Representatives from going ahead with the suit, Ozekhome told Justice Kolawole on Wednesday that the lawmakers had threatened to arrest Alison-Madueke and others.
Counsel for the National Assembly and the House of Representatives were not in court on Wednesday.
Ozekhome said the lawmakers threatened to invoke the provision of section 88 of the Constitution to order the arrest of the minister and others invited, should they decline to honour the invitation to appear before the House of Reps on June 25, 26 and 27.
Justice Kolawole refused to grant any interim order sought by Ozekhome to stop the House of Representatives from going ahead with the probe.
He said such order was nor necessary since the lawmakers had been served with the processes and as such were aware of the existence of the case.
The House of Representatives has apologised to Justice Ahmed Mohammed of the Federal High Court, Abuja, for misconstruing his ruling on the case brought by the Petroleum Resources Minister, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke.
Tambuwal and the others
The minister was seeking the court’s leave to stop the House Committee on Public Accounts from investigating alleged N10 billion expenses she incurred on chartering jets for private use with public funds.
Addressing reporters at the weekend, the Deputy Chairman of the House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Victor Ogene, said the position of the House was misinterpreted.
Ogene said: “The position of the House at no time was that the court had stopped the committee from functioning. But as it turned out, it was misread to mean that an injunction restraining the committee from carrying out its assignment has been handed out.
“In the light of that, we wish to correct that impression and to say that at no time did Justice Ahmed Mohammed of the Federal High Court, Abuja, issue a restraining order on the House.
“And so, we are sorry for that slip, whichever way it came from; more importantly, to also thank the judge for standing up on the side of justice – at the last, hearing that matter. He refused to grant any injunction restraining the House from going ahead with its business.”
The lawmaker said the House, under the Constitution, has the power to look into the affairs of the Minister of Petroleum Resources as long as she is a public officer and spends funds voted by the National Assembly.
He said: “Some people …have insinuated that the House does not have the right to actually carry on with its responsibilities. And they read parts of the constitution in isolation.
“For anyone who wants to get the correct picture, Sections 88 and 89, when you take both sections, you would come to the easy conclusion that the House is empowered to look into any matter on which it has legislative competence or for which it has appropriated money.”
Ogene said one benefit of the contestation “is that the position of the law remains that no man or woman is above the law”.
According to him, the House of Representatives will not shirk its responsibility at ensuring the proper utilisation of funds appropriated to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and that though every Nigerian or any other resident in Nigeria is at liberty to go to court, “there is a difference between an individual and an official of the state”.
Ogene added: “So, acting in your personal capacity is different from seeking to stop Ministries, Departments and Agencies from being answerable to the Nigerian people. Indeed, any life not worth examining is not worth living. The essence of democracy is to ensure that we examine ourselves.”
On April 28, through its spokesperson, Zakari Mohammed, the House said it had been served with a court notice which was received through the Office of the Speaker.
Mohammed said the House would have to tarry and get legal opinion on the issue before beginning the investigation, which was earlier scheduled to begin on that same date.
But Justice Ahmed Mohammed gave the House the nod to continue the case, saying he did not give a restraining injunction to stop the investigation.
