Property recovery: Reps threaten AGF, EFCC, others

House of Representatives Ad Hoc panel investigating the legality, as well as the manner in which the special investigation panel for the recovery of public property is operating, has threatened to issue sanctions against agencies that choose to ignore its summons.

It, therefore, re-invited the Accountant-General Federation and Auditor General of the Federation to unfailingly appear before it next Tuesday. Also summoned were the head of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Budget offi ce of the Federation, Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Independent Corrupt Practices and other related off ences Commission (ICPC), Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and the Inspector-General of Police.

The Committee, through its chairman, Ahman Pategi, was forced to put off its planned investigative due to the absence of heads of parastatal expected at the event, noting that the move was intended to understand the activities of the special investigative panel for the recovery of public property. Pategi, who frowned on the absence of heads of the invited parastatal, said: “We want to stop the blame game that we collect money without doing our work. The Committee will start applying sanctions on persons who fail to honour its summons but failed to appear.

Even if it takes us to invite the president, we will.” He added that “we are worried over the level of arrogance and incompetence put up by these parastatal.” Declaring the event open earlier, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, who was represented by the Deputy Minority Leader, Binta Bello, advised that the investigative hearing should ensure fruitful discussion in with a view to tackling real the issues.

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