No fewer than 30 Civil Societies Group, CSOs led by the Conscience Nigeria, CN and Centre for Public Accountability, CPA, Monday, called on the Economic and Financial Crimes, EFCC, to as a matter of urgency, commence immediate investigation into the allegations of padding of the 2016 Budget by the leadership of the House of Representatives.

CSOs in Lagos, during their march to the EFCC office in Ikoyi, calling for the probe of Speaker Yakubu Dogara and other principal members of the House of Representatives over alleged padding of the 2016 Budget.

The CSOs made this call in a petition addressed to the Acting Chairman of the EFCC and submitted during a road walk to the anti-graft agency’s Lagos office.

They charged the EFCC on the need for Speaker Yakubu Dogara; former Chairman, House Committee on Appropriation, Hon Jibrin Abdulmumin, to be investigated and prosecuted over budget padding scandal.

They also called on well-meaning Nigerians to join them in the road walk, saying the activities will be a national movement that kick-started in Lagos and will be move to other states of the federation until justice is done.

The placards and banners-carrying CSOs which converged at St. Gregory College Junction by Awolowo way, Ikoyi marched to the EFCC Office at 15, Awolowo Way Ikoyi chanting solidarity songs.

The petition signed by the Executive Director, Conscience Nigeria, Comrade Tosin Adeyanju and the Executive Director, Centre for Public Accountability, Femi Lawson read in part: “Conscience Nigeria and Centre for Public Accountability in partnership with 30 other Civil Society Organisations write this petition to you (Acting EFCC Chairman) in our capacity as patriotic Nigerians, and stakeholders in the Nigerian project, as we wish to call on your commission to in the interest of our nation commence an immediate investigation into the allegations of padding of the 2016 Budget by the leadership of the Federal House of Representatives.

“We are disturbed by what seems to be the grand conspiracy by some persons to discard the enormity of the depth of corruption involved in the entire scenario as Nigerians have been made to know over the past couple of weeks.

“It would be recalled that sometimes in June this year, the former Chairman, Federal House of Representatives, Hon. Jibrin Abdulmumin, spilled the beans on the numerous insertions that were illegally imputed into the 2016 budget of the country by Principal officers of the House of Representatives in the course of working on the budget submitted to the National Assembly by President Muhammadu Buhari for personal gains.”