House suspends ex-Appropriation Chairman for 180 days

Abdulmumin Jibrin, former chairman of the House Appropriations committee, has been suspended from the Green Chamber for 180 legislative days.

Jibrin had accused Speaker Yakubu Dogara and three other principal officers of the House of Representatives of "criminal insertions" into the 2016 budget.

The vocal lawmaker has also called Dogara "corrupt" and a "shameless thief" in the past.

The quartet, Jibrin allege, padded the 2016 budget to the tune of billions of naira.

In this afternoon's ruling from the lower legislative chamber, Jibrin was also banned from holding positions of authority for the rest of the eighth Assembly.

It's unclear at this point what 180 days equates to with respect to a calendar year for our lawmaking body. Do the legislators sit for two or three days in a week? Are recess days part of the suspension?