Irked by Akpabio's comment, Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, gave Akpabio a 48-hour ultimatum to name the lawmakers that benefitted from the contracts.
The House of
Representatives is set to sue Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill
Akpabio, for comments he made that federal lawmakers receive over 60 per cent
of contracts awarded by the Niger Delta Development Commission.
Akpabio made the
comment on Tuesday when he appeared before the House Committee probing
financial misappropriation in the NDDC.
Irked by Akpabio's
comment, Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, gave Akpabio a 48-hour
ultimatum to name the lawmakers that benefitted from the contracts.
After failing to do
so, Gbajabiamila, who spoke at the commencement of the plenary on Thursday,
said the House will begin the process to sue Akpabio.
He said, "As
much as we still have a lot to do in that regard, I refuse to sit here in good
conscience and allow anyone to assassinate the character of the House in an
attempt to deflect accountability for their conduct in office.
"This morning,
I asked the Clerk of @HouseNGR to engage the services of legal counsel, and
instruct them to initiate a criminal complaint of perjury against the minister.
At the same time, we will instruct counsel to explore the possibility of a
civil defamation suit.
"The House of
Representatives is a public trust placed in our care for the duration of our
term in office. We must prove ourselves worthy of this public trust or risk the
censure of history.
"Therefore, we will resist every attempt to undermine this institution, whether such attempts come from within or from outside. @HouseNGR will live up to the highest expectations of the Nigerian people. This is our commitment, and we will not fail."
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