We’ve Only Asked Jonathan To Implement Budget

Mr. Mikhail Lanre Odubote, a first term lawmaker, representing Epe Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, in this interview with Political Platform, speaks on the recent impeachment threat  on President Goodluck Jonathan for his failure to implement the 2012 budget and other issues. 

Over the last one year what has been your experience in the House?

It has been a wonderful experience being a member of the Seventh Assembly. I’m happy because whatever success this House of Representatives has achieved, I’m part of it. The experience I have gathered in the various committees I belong to, especially the Committee on Media and Publicity, has been worthwhile for me. In the last one year, I have learnt and understood how government operates at the federal level; understood more what’s called democracy with special reference to budgeting and how budgets are implemented which will of course pave the way for economic growth. So, it has been a very good experience for me but, of course, we continue to learn and contribute our quota to the development and growth of the country through our activities in the House.

Before your election into the House of Representatives, you were the Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Adeyemi Ikuforiji. Will you say that your experience in that position prepare you for the present assignment?

Then I was working purely as a media practitioner but now I’m into politics fully. Of course, then working with the Speaker afforded me the opportunity to interact and mingle with politicians of repute which revived my political instincts but that cannot be compared with now when I can say I’m fully involved. Remember, I have been involved in politics since the days of the old Social Democratic Party (SDP) but working with the Speaker as his media spokesman enriched my political knowledge which, of course, paved the way for my present assignment.

When you were elected into the House of Representatives what was your major challenge you face?

The major challenge has been on the issue of budgeting. You know we are representatives of the people, hence there is the challenge to make the budget presented by the executive to be people-friendly and for someone like me who is just coming to the House for the first time one needs to learn and interact with more experienced colleagues particularly in the area of making the budget provides for the people of my constituency. But thank God, we have been able to surmount that.

What is your reaction to the recent subsidy probe bribery saga involving the chairman of the committee that probed the payment of the subsidy, Farouk Lawan, and business man, Femi Otedola? 

I stand by the decision of the House to investigate the matter. The two people involved have been invited by the committee investigating the matter and you all saw how Otedola behaved when he appeared before the committee. It is clear that Otedola does not want to cooperate with the committee mandated by the House to investigate the matter. I don’t have anything to say more on that but whatever the House decides after the conclusion of the committee’s assignment is what I will stand by. For now let’s just leave it at that.

Many Nigerians believe that the Lawan bribery matter was raised as a ploy to kill the subsidy report. What is your reaction to this?

That one is now left for the society at large, especially the media to examine critically. We are talking of missing trillions of naira in the name of subsidy payment and the need to establish the truth. The House has taken steps to investigate the matter through a committee which has completed its assignment and submitted a report but the chairman of the committee is being accused of taking bribe in a sting operation. Remember, this sting operation took place about two months before it was made know to the public. General practice all over the world is that security agents are involved in sting operations and the culprit is arrested immediately at the scene of the event. What we have here is that a sting operation took place in April and it was made public in June with the alleged principal suspect not arrested in April and at the scene of the event. Let the general public decide on this and if this can be used as an alibi to kill the subsidy report.

Going by recent happenings in the country, it seems members of the House of Representatives are in cordial relationship with the President; what can you say on this? 

Many have forgotten the fact that the major function of the House of Representatives which is very fundamental is to make law. Now if we have made the law and the law is not obeyed. I said earlier that we are the elected representatives of the people and we duly make laws on how the people’s money should be spent and it becomes imperative for us to monitor how this money is being spent as part of our oversight function. Suffice to add that if we found out that the people’s money is being used for other purposes except those ones we approved, of course, we will take action to protect the people’s money and this is what we have done here.

We need infrastructure reinvigoration, yet the government is doing as if everything is right. Look at the roads, they are bad. There is nothing wrong for us travelling by road every weekend to Lagos but the roads are bad. The airports are nothing to write about. Yet we appropriated money for capital projects, what have they done with it? We need to ask question and that is why we are asking the President to do his job which is to implement the budget.

The recent invitation of the President by the House generated controversy, what is your take on this?

This also relates to the Appropriation Act. We appropriated huge sums of money for security yet people are dying and the security situation in the country continues to deteriorate. So, as the representatives of the people, we invited the President to come and explain to us what he is doing to improve the situation. At least, as the people’s representatives, we need to hear from the President for us to explain to our people. So there is no big deal in us inviting the President because we have the constitutional right to do so. So what is the big deal about this invitation? Remember that the President once invited us to Aso Rock and we all went, so why are they crying over our own invitation? All we want to do is to discuss with him on how we will improve the security situation and move this country. If he feels somehow about this; good luck to him.

How will you describe the performance of the House in the last one year?

Have you had this type of House since the commencement of this democracy? This Seventh Assembly is very unique; a House that anchors its uniqueness on unity. I’m proud to be a member of this House because in the last one year we have been able to perform our duty with sincerity of purpose and unity of mind. There is no discrimination and we all relate like brothers and sisters.