Reps lifts Abdulmumin Jibrin’s suspension for just one day

Yakubu Dogara and Abdulmumin Jibrin

The House of Representatives has lifted the suspension placed on Kano lawmaker Abdulmumin Jibrin so as to enable him to defend before ethics and privileges committee, following fresh petitions against him.

The Cable reports that the lower house passed a resolution allowing Jibrin into the national assembly complex’s premises to defend himself before the ethics and privileges committee because of fresh petitions filed against him.

In the motion by Nicholas Ossai, chairman of the ethics committee, he said Jibrin needed to defend himself against the petitions in order for the House to be fair to him.

“The committee on ethics and privileges has commenced investigations into the petitions and seeks the indulgence of the house to invite Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin, on grounds of fair hearing, to be allowed into the precincts of the house for the purpose of the defending the allegations contained in the petitions,” Ossai said.

He said the petitions received against Jibrin were on his absenteeism and poor representation of his constituency of Kiru/Bebeji in Kano state and for operating foreign accounts which was in violation of the 1999 constitution.

Speaker Yakubu Dogara agreed that in principle of fair hearing, Jibrin had to be given the opportunity to defend himself.

Recall that Jibrin was suspended for 180 legislative days on September 24 for reportedly breaching legislators’ privileges over the issue of budget padding allegations he leveled against Dogara.