By Magu: National Assembly Put Buhari On The Spot At State Dinner
Leadership of the National Assembly has reopened the case of the Acting-Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu in a bid to have him sacked by President Buhari, BlackBox Nigeria has learnt.
The fresh plot to displace Magu was staged at the State dinner organised by Buhari where he met with some selected members of the Senate and principal officers of the House of Reps. A source disclosed to The Nations that the lawmakers are stalling confirmation of over 45 nominees should Magu remain as Chair.
It was learnt that Buhari who didn’t give response to the sack call is being tied due to seven suits in Court over Magu’s continued stay in office. It was also learnt that a principal officer who was earlier supporting the anti-graft boss is now calling for his arrest.
The source said: “The face-off between the Executive and the National Assembly over Magu reared its ugly head again at a dinner the President had with the principal officers of the legislature.
“What was meant for a new rapprochement by the two arms was turned into an agitation session with a Senator from the South-West demanding the sack of the Acting EFCC chairman. The Senator wanted to know why the resolution of the Senate on Magu was not complied with.
“Although a principal officer from the House of Representatives actually backed the Senator, the President was non-committal. He actually glossed over the request. The lawmakers felt a bit shocked that the President was not forthcoming on their request.”
“Apart from the concern over Magu, a principal officer of the House of Representatives also shocked the President on how he raised issues over non-appointment of members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) into key positions.
“The affected principal officer said lack of empowerment of APC members was making loyalty to the government difficult.”
Findings however revealed that the President was “non-committal” because there are more than seven suits in the court over Magu’s continued stay in office.
A presidency source said: “By his nature, the President does not act on the spur of the moment. He takes decision after considering all angles to it. He is always saying that he will account for his action in the Hereafter. He likes to be fair to all based on empirical evidence.
“It is also subjudice for the President to make comments because the row over Magu’s confirmation has generated many matters in court. The lawmakers ought to know better on this.
“The presidency is awaiting pronouncement by the court on this appointee. In the spirit of fairness, the President has no choice than to allow the status quo to remain. In fact, the Senate is a party to some of these cases.
“Beyond the cases, there were other issues which cropped up including allegations against Magu which the President discovered were unfounded.
“Although some forces in government wanted Magu out, there is also international dimension to it. Some donor agencies and a few countries collaborating with Nigeria on anti-corruption war were okay with the performance of Magu.
“The President must weigh all options because the Magu saga is at the heart of the anti-corruption campaign which has defined this government.”
