Members of the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee probing the purchase of arms and ammunition by the military have rejected the representation of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen Ibrahim Attahiru, at the commencement of the investigation of the purchase of military hardware equipment by the Nigerian military.
The Chief of Army Staff was invited by the Committee last Friday at the commencement of its investigative hearing to give an oral testimony on the alleged misappropriation of funds meant for the purchase of arms and ammunition by the military establishment but he sent in Brig-Gen. Charles Ofoche, a Senior Army officer, and other officers to represent him at the hearing.
The Committee had insisted that the Chief of Army Staff appear in person as any other person in representative capacity cannot be held liable for any utterance on the matter under investigation.
The Committee explained that it is detailed to investigate the purchase of arms and ammunition for the ongoing war against insurgency, banditry, and other crimes in the Country by the former Service Chiefs from 2010 to date.
At the commencement of the probe, a member of the probe panel, Chudi Momah, had raised a point of order having noted that the Chief of Army Staff was conspicuously absent but rather was represented by top military officers.
Chidi cited the provisions of section 88 of the 1999 Constitution which empowers the parliament to invite anybody for the purpose of exposing corruption, inefficiency, and waste in the administration of public funds and called for the rejection of the Chief of Army Staff’s representation at the investigation.
The Chief of Army Staff representative had earlier tendered the unreserved apology of his Principal to the committee on his absence, explaining that he is presently on a working tour of the States of the federation to ensure that insecurity is tackled.
The lawmakers, who noted that President Muhammad Buhari’s appointment of the Chief of Army Staff is to secure the country, nontheless refused to accept the apology and demanded that the Chief of Army Staff appears in person.
They also added that there are allegations that monies running into billions of naira released to the former Service Chiefs for the purchase of arms and ammunition is missing and such matter is also top on their probe list.