Health Minister’s resignation fallout - Reps return share of loot
Abuja - The House of Representatives has admitted that its Committee on Health has returned the N10m it had collected from the Ministry of Health out of the N300m unspent 2007 budget allegedly shared by its officials in December.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Drugs, Narcotics and Financial Crimes, Mr. Dave Salako, disclosed this in Abuja.
Salako’s committee oversees the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, which had quizzed the affected lawmakers, House and Senate committees’ officials and their colleagues in the ministry over the scandal.
Dr. Alaba Ojomo, chair the House Committee on Health had earlier admitted collecting the money from the Health ministry for a “capacity building trip to Ghana” and added that the committee was unaware that the money was stolen.
But while the House Committee failed to undertake the Ghana trip after the scandal had broken out, the Senate Committee on Health, chaired by Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello, went to Ghana.
Salako described the Senate Committee’s action as unfortunate in view of the source of the money that financed the trip.
The Minister of Health, Prof. Adenike Grange and a Minister of State in the ministry, Mr. Gabriel Aduku, on Tuesday resigned over the scam.
Salako said, “The committee returned the money when it realized that it was part of the stolen funds. The committee was not aware that the money was stolen when it was collected.”
He cautioned the National Assembly committees against asking any ministry or agency for money for their activities.
Salako noted that some agencies and ministries set aside funds for capacity training, which committees could benefit from without strings attached.
According to him, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Dimeji Bankole, had directed that committees should not embark on oversight trips until their funds were released to avoid financial scandals.
It is sketchy if heads might roll in the Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello-led Senate Committee on Health, following allegations that it collected N10m from the Ministry of Health for its oversight functions.
The Chairman, Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, Senator Omar Hambagda, said his committee was prepared to act on the matter if it was properly brought before it.
Also the Ethics and Privileges Committee of the House of Representatives said on Wednesday that it would probe its Health Committee if it was established that the members were involved in the graft that led to the resignation of the former Minister of Health, Prof. Adenike Grange.
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