Bankole, who appeared at the House as demanded by members, forced the House into a closed session as several members insist that the matter should be discussed in the open.
At the end of the session, the Speaker said “the House in closed session discussed issues concerning the House and the Speaker offered explanation satisfactorily. Payment of emoluments to suspended members is being resolved.”
Several members protested the position by shouting ‘no’ but when the question was put by the Speaker; majority voted that they were satisfied by the explanations offered by Bankole on the contentious issues of House finances and the loan.
But a member who spoke to Daily Trust on condition of anonymity said the Speaker revealed that the House is indebted to some banks but that the issue is being resolved and members emoluments will soon be paid.
He said “I am surprised because the Speaker said he took the loan in May last year. I thought the loan was taken this year in view of the fact that the budget has not been signed so that when the budgetary allocation comes, they will use it to settle the loan. But that was not the case.”
The members said “the loan was collected May last year to subsidise House spending in anticipation of budgetary releases. When the anticipated money failed to come they now started rolling it over and over. In my own estimation this loan of about N10 billion is stealing.”
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