Demo-Cracy
August 17th, 2007 | Published in Corruption, Democracy, Governance, Nigeria, elections | 6 Comments
Is this what politics/democracy has become in Nigeria? A state assembly invaded by hoodlums asking to be settled for job done during the elections- Content from Guardian.
Hoodlums disrupt Ondo Assembly over N15m scam, guest house
From Julius Alabi, AkureMANY members of the Ondo State House of Assembly threw finesse to the winds yesterday, bolting through windows and scaling fences to escape the wrath of suspected political thugs.
The suspected hoodlums, armed with dangerous weapons including guns, charms and cutlasses, had stormed the House, demanding answers to unresolved questions over a ‘phanthon’ guest house project and the N15 million meant for its construction.
The Guardian learnt that the House has been engulfed in controversy over a guest house said to have been completed at a cost of N15 million by the immediate past legislators.
However, up till yesterday, neither the building nor the N15 million spent on it could be traced.
The N15 million was alleged to have actually been used for the Governorship and House of Assembly elections by the immediate past legislators.
However, having apparently gotten wind of the fraud, suspected hoodlums who were used to execute the last general elections besieged the house demanding their own share of the money as their remuneration.
Eyewitnesses told The Guardian that the Leader of the House, Mr. Kunle Agunbiade, got a raw deal from the miscreants who accused him of failing to fulfil his promise to set aside money for their promised monthly stipend.
It was gathered that it took the intervention of the Speaker of the House, Mr. Olufowobi Bakkita Bello, to save the situation. He promised to look into the grouse of the hoodlums.
Some of the scared legislators, who spoke to The Guardian, admitted that the issue of the N15 million guest house had been discussed in the House several times without resolution. They confirmed that both the money and guest house were nowhere to be found.
“We are trying to find out how the money was utilised and those responsible for the disappearance of the funds. We are going to make those behind the scam cough it out because it was meant for the members of the House,” one of them said.
August 17th, 2007 at 2:48 am (#)
Blame PDP and their cohorts. They’ve succeeded in selling Nigeria to the highest bidder
August 17th, 2007 at 6:27 am (#)
Well hoodlums demanding 15million naira was bad, how about today’s report in Punch that…
Some militants operating in the Niger-Delta have demanded N500m from the Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Agagu.
The demand was made by the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger-Delta (western fringe) in a statement issued by one Chief Ibeseikumo Biku and distributed to journalists in Akure on Thursday.
According to the unsigned statement by Biku, “the money will be used to demobilise stranded militants allegedly recruited to vote for Agagu during the April poll. (extract).
This is DEMOCRAZY as witnessed in Ondo State.
August 17th, 2007 at 5:35 pm (#)
“It was gathered that it took the intervention of the Speaker of the House, Mr. Olufowobi Bakkita Bello, to save the situation. He promised to look into the grouse of the hoodlums”.
He promised to look into the grouse of the hoodlums? what the hell does that mean? While he is at ait, he sould “look into” te grouse of the citizens of Ondo state as well! In fact, the hoodlums should just take over the house of assembly, at least they seem t be “effective” in their jobs. Hissssssssss
August 18th, 2007 at 4:30 am (#)
@Bitter Nigerian,
“He promised to look into the grouse of the hoodlums” just means that the Ondo Assembly and these Hoodlums were once partners. Now things are turning the other way and the Hoodlums now have a ‘grouse’ against the house assembly. This is quite plain and simple, nothing too difficult to decode, as far as Nigerian politics is concerned.
See, the truth is, without the Hoodlums, the Ondo Assembly won’t be on sit. The Ondo Assembly and the Hoodlums are two hands that have to ‘complement’ each other. No hoodlums, no assembly.
MpMp
August 18th, 2007 at 10:48 am (#)
Talk about reaping what they’ve sown.
August 18th, 2007 at 12:27 pm (#)
And in the meantime, the Democratically elected Governor who clearly won the mandate of the people in the name of Dr Mimiko is still battling it out in the Electoral Petition Judiciary in the name of peace. Anyway those who live by the guns would die by it. The truth will prevail in Ondo state. This is why Ondo State is crying FOUL.