By Okey Ndiribe & Emman Ovuakporie

ABUJA – MEMBERS of the House of Representatives, yesterday, demanded to know the whereabout of grants from developed countries and various multilateral organisations to Nigeria.

Chairman, House Committee on Media and Public affairs, Zakari Mohammed, who made the disclosure at a briefing, said the grants were not captured in the 2013 budget proposal and that lawmakers had no knowledge of how much they were and where they were domiciled.

Mohammed, who was reacting to media reports credited to Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, urged the House not to politicise the issue of oil benchmark in the 2013 budget.

He said the 7th assembly was in pursuit of transparency and accountability, in line with its legislative agenda.

Mohammed said: “Our 2013 budget has come. Do you know that grants that come to this country are not captured in the budget?

“Where are those funds being applied? And other series of accounts not known. We are asking for that account and bringing it to the public for everybody.

“Nobody can play monkey games with us. Grants are not captured in the budget. Please ask them because we want to know?”

He assured that the House would not be blackmailed into passing the 2013 budget without asking pertinent questions, insisting that “as for 2013 budget, we will not serve as a garbage in, garbage out House. 2013 budget is on course. We are working on it; we will ask questions.”

Reacting to the minister’s submission that benchmark determination was a professional and technical issue, Mohammed maintained that the House had thoroughbred professionals in various fields, competent enough to analyze the budget and fix benchmark.

He said: “We have professionals in this House, who are better than those parading themselves as having monopoly of managing the economy. No amount of blackmail will cow us.”