SEC DG must go, Reps insist

By Okey Ndiribe & Emman Ovuakporie
ABUJA – THE House of Representatives, Thursday, insisted that until the Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, Ms Arunma Oteh, was fired, the commission would continue to enjoy zero budget allocation.
Addressing journalists on activities of the House in the last one year, Chairman House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Zakari Mohammed, said, “we will not touch her budget until she is sacked, we have done our findings and we have made our recommendations.
“We will always have a meeting point, it is like a child and his parents having a quarrel, they both must meet somewhere.
“We and Oteh are at a meeting point now and as you are aware, it was the House resolution which has the force of the law.”
Mohammed explained further that the House and Senate were on the same page on the issue.
On the endorsed 2013 N4.987trillion budget, Mohammed said the 2012 budget components will run over to 2013, saying  “if we allow that, it would affect capital projects in the budget.
Also, Mohammed said, “the $79 benchmark was agreed upon by both chambers because we know it is possible as  the excess will be used to settle local debts; this development will go a long way in boosting the private sector of our economy. ”
Reacting to a question on why the Millennium Development Goals, MDGs budget was approved, despite the failure of the promoters to defend the budget, Mohammed  said:  ” MDGs is a global thing and Nigeria is a signatory to it, we will be failing in our duty if we fail to appropriate money for them(it). ”
On reports of investigations into Herman Hembe and Farouk Lawan’s scandals, he simply said”by February next year, the matter will be behind us as the reports are ready. “
Culled: Vanguard