Fresh scandal brews over Farouk Lawan’s $600,000 bribery scandal

[MrVan]

BY OKEY NDIRIBE AND EMMAN OVUAKPORIE

ABUJA-There are indications that fresh trouble is brewing  at the House of Representatives over allegations that Chairman of the House's Adhoc Committee on Petroleum Subsidy Hon. Farouk Lawan was involved in a bribery scandal worth $600,000 last month.

Already there are speculations that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) may have invited Hon Lawan over the bribery allegation which sources say have already resulted in the Speaker of the House Hon. Aminu Tambuwal disowning the legislator over the messy incident.

It was gathered that Tambuwal had confronted Lawan over the issue in a meeting of Principal officers of the House where the Chairman of the Adhoc Committee on Petroleum Subsidy was summoned to defend himself over the allegation.

Sources said  that Hon. Lawan had initially denied the allegation when it was put to him by the Speaker but froze in shock when he was confronted with details of what transpired at the  address where officials of an unnamed oil company had  given him the huge amount of foreign currency which had been marked.

It was further gathered that unknown to Hon Lawan, the entire incident was recorded by video after which copies were sent to a former Head of State who handed it over to Tambuwal.

It would be recalled  that in the wake of the controversy that was generated over the Federal Government's planned total withdrawal of subsidy from  petroleum products last January,  the House of Representatives set up  the Adhoc Committee to probe how the subsidy fund that was appropriated by the National Assembly in the past had been disbursed.

Among the findings of the House was that despite the fact that only N400 billion was appropriated for payment of oil subsidy in 2011, over one trillion naira was spent.  It was also alleged that a lot of the payments were made to phoney companies.

Vanguard Nigeria

[JimGuri]

If Hon Farouk Lawan did a wonderful job by thoroughly investigating the subsidy scandal that found so many highly placed persons and/or organizations all soiled in what the poor Nigerian populace are now paying for in the current pump prices of petroleum products, then he couldn't have been a Nigerian but some foreigner here! Taking and eating baits, or playing with fire? Then you may as well be a fish out of water, and just as a fish cannot survive out of water, there is just no hiding place for this hitherto, golden honorable member whose honor, rather, is now beginning to be dishonored. You may have done a great deal of honor to Nigerians for a wonderful and job well done, Hon Lawan, but just how we wish this story were still part of your uncovering panel you diligently sat on on behalf of the Nigerian people you and your colleagues represent, thereby, adding yet another feather unto the crown already on your heads.
Are the concerned authorities really through and done with this bait situation hanging on the head, or better put, choking the wind pipes of Hon Lawan in order to buy more time in government's more thoroughness, to actually prosecute? But if they are done, then we all are in some real web of a huge labyrinth, because we may never hear anything again of the fuel subsidy removal scandal! The sin of this honorable member could turn out to be committed by all Nigerians in substitution. Time will tell!