Police Equipment Fund: Martins’ lawyers fail to stop Reps’ probe

Bola Badmus, Abuja - 14.02.2008

THE House of Representatives was on Wednesday literally turned to a battle ground as lawyers of the National Coordinator of the Presidential Committee on Police Equipment Fund (PCPEF), Chief Kenny Martins, tried fruitlessly to stop the probe of the fund by the House Committee on Public Petition.

A petitioner, Dr. Godson Ewulum, had petitioned the House to look into the running of the Fund, alleging massive fraud perpetrated by its national coordinator.

Lawyers of Chief Martins, Chief Tunji Abayomi and Mr. Mike Ozekhome, whose argument was that the committee had no powers to look into the ways and manners the Fund expended the N50 billion it generated on behalf of the police, became agitated to the point that Abayomi had to pull off his suit and charge at the committee chairman, Honourable C.I.D. Maduabum, asking him to jail him if he liked.

Both Ozekhome and Abayomi cited relevant sections of the constitution, including Section 88, on why the committee could not proceed with the investigation of Martins or the Fund.

They maintained that the fund was a private initiative and, therefore, not belonging to the government or the public, over which the House could conduct an over-sight function.

However, they could not convince the committee which also cited relevant sections of the constitution, arguing that in spite of the fact that the case was before the law court, it was only the National Assembly that the constitution gave powers to conduct investigations into anything, whereas the police and other security agencies derived their powers from the statutes.