Honour invitation or risk arrest, Police tell Goje

The Nigeria Police Force says it will arrest the lawmaker representing Gombe-Central Senatorial District, Senator
Danjuma Goje, if he continues to ignore its invitation.

The Force Public Relations Officer, Mr. Jimoh Moshood, said this during a breakfast television show titled, ‘Sunrise Daily’ on Channels Television.

Moshood said, “On the day the house was searched, a call was put through to him (Goje) by Ango Usman, who is the housekeeper, confirming to him the presence of the police team. He (Goje) said he was coming on that day but he switched off his phone afterwards.

“The following day, which was a Friday, one Nura got in touch with the police investigator and said they were coming on Friday with their lawyers to the police headquarters to meet with the investigators but they never did. Later, they called that they would come on Monday but they never did.

“So, I am using this opportunity to equally call on him to appear before the investigation panel because the investigation is still ongoing into all the recovery that was made in his house and it is important that nobody be allowed to cast aspersion on the investigation of police to pervert the course of justice.”

When asked if Goje would be arrested should he continue to shun police invitation, Moshood said, “Yes, nobody is above arrest. We will definitely do so and it is important for him to know that on time and appear before the police investigation team handling the matter.”

The National Assembly had, on Wednesday, said the 2017 Appropriation Bill passage had been stalled after the Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation, Goje, told the upper chamber that the police carted away budget documents when they raided his Abuja home recently.

The former governor, while raising a point of order at the plenary, lamented the damage done to his property during the raid, saying work on the 2017 budget had been put on hold since the policemen invaded his house and took away the documents.

We seized files on assassination plot, cash –Police
Also, the police, in a statement on Thursday, denied carting away the 2017 proposed appropriation bill during their raid on Goje’s residence in Kano.

The force stated that it recovered 38 files and six envelopes containing documents which comprised write-ups on “how former Kano State governor, Ibrahim Shekarau, plotted the assassination of Sheikh Jafaru.”

In the statement on Thursday, the Force Public Relations Officer added that N18.056m, $19,850 and SR9, 400 (Saudi Riyals), and a laptop were also recovered during the raid.

He stated that detectives also uncovered files on funds spent on security administration and information gathering a–g, 2009; file on release of funds for Special operations a–f, 2009; file on Gombe State Government cash inflow 2005; file on Project 2007 – Executive Briefs on how to fight opposition in Gombe State – Strategies and Tactics.

Other exhibits, according to the police, include envelopes containing permit to operate as an Oil Industry Service Company (special categories) 2011 and letters from Alhaji Mohammed Danjuma Goje (Sarkin Yakin Gombe) to the Managing Director, LUBELL Nigeria Limited of proposed residential Development at Kashere Phase II, dated January 16, 2007 and November 19, 2010.

“The Nigeria Police Force wishes to state categorically that there was no single document relating to the 2017 budget sighted or removed by the Police team that executed the search warrant. There is a video recording of the execution of the search warrant,” the statement added.

The force disclosed that the search warrant from a court of competent jurisdiction was executed at the former Gombe State governor’s residence following intelligence report that stolen funds and other incriminating items were about to be moved out of the house.

Moshood said on arrival of the police team, the housekeeper, Ango Usman, informed Goje about their mission and he promised to come around, but later switched off his GSM phone.

He said, “The search warrant was successfully executed in the presence of three close relatives of Senator Danjuma Goje, who are residing in the house and the recovery was made in their presence.

“The relatives – Danjuma Mohammed, nephew to the Senator; Usman, housekeeper; and Aisha Umar, stepdaughter to Goje – opened the house and took the police team round the building, and endorsed their signatures after the completion of the search as required by the procedure of law on search warrant, which contained the money, documents and laptop recovered, and none of the items include 2017 budget document.”

We can’t pass budget without Senate –Reps
On its part, the House of Representatives warned that the passage of the 2017 budget would be stalled if the Nigeria Police continued to hold on to budget documents its operatives allegedly carted away from Goje’s home.

The House said it could not pass the budget alone without the Senate, adding that so long as the documents were not returned, the budget would be stalled.

The Chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Abdulrazak Namdas, told journalists in Abuja that the Appropriations Committee of the Senate and its counterpart in the House were working jointly on the budget before some of the documents were taken away by the police.

Namdas said, “Some people have asked why can’t the House go ahead and pass the budget.
“Let me state here that both the Senate and the House have been working jointly on the budget as a joint committee.

“The documents are the same. So, if some of the documents are not there, this action of the police will jeopardise the timeline of the budget.

“The police have only succeeded in delaying the budget.”

How N’Assembly forced IG to return Senator’s documents
It was reliably gathered at the National Assembly on Thursday that the senators forced the Inspector-General of Police to return the documents that policemen carted away from Goje’s home.

A reliable source, who was privy to the developments at a meeting Idris had with the leadership of both chambers of the National Assembly, said the lawmakers were hard on the police boss.

But the source, who is close to the leadership of the National Assembly but insisted on speaking on condition of anonymity, disclosed that members of the House of Representatives declared war on Idris unless he backed down on the probe of the former governor of Gombe State.

The source stated, “Many will be surprised that the police, who were all out for war, suddenly returned the documents they carted away from Goje’s home.

“The IGP told members of the House yesterday (Wednesday) that a whistle-blower informed the police that Goje had collected a bribe to manipulate the 2017 budget and that he was also bribed to influence the confirmation of (acting Chairman of EFCC) Ibrahim Magu by the Senate. That informed the move by the police to invade Goje’s home with the aim of recovering a large amount of cash.

“The Reps were very brutal with him. They brought out the 2016 budget and showed him some infractions in the implementation of the police’ budget. They made him to understand that the police had also erred by converting funds appropriated for the acquisition of Armoured Personnel Carrier to buy cars. They told the IGP that the matter would also be probed.”

Presidency confirms return of items to Goje
Meanwhile, the Presidency confirmed, on Thursday, that the police had returned items seized from Goje’s residence.

The Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senate, Senator Ita Enang, in a statement in Abuja, said all the issues on the police raid had been resolved.

The statement read, “Further to the visit by the Nigeria Police Force to the residence of Senator Danjuma Goje in the course of routine duties, wherefrom certain items were taken by the police, and issues subsequently arose, I am to inform all that all the items taken in the course of routine police duties have been returned to the distinguished Senator at his house by the Nigeria Police.”