The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, said yesterday that the House would follow up on the recommendations of the ad-hoc committee on the probe of fuel subsidy.

Tambuwal made the promise when the organised labour paid him a courtesy visit in Abuja, saying that the House would continue to make laws for the good of the country.

“The House will continue to do things that meet the yearnings and aspirations of Nigerians, we will remain focused.

“The National Assembly will not make any attempt to take away the freedom of Nigerians but rather, will make laws to strengthen our democracy.’’

Tambuwal maintained that the House would continue to partner with civil society organisations (CSOs) as they were critical to the legislature.

He cautioned religious leaders over comments on the activities of the Boko Haram sect which, he said, was not religious.

“Religious leaders should be more cautious in their comments over Boko Haram. Boko Haram is not purely religious, but they are out to destroy the nation.’’

Earlier, the President of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC),Mr Abduwaheed Omar, said that organised labour was in support of the House in the fuel subsidy probe.

“We want to assure you that the organised labour will be behind you.

“We want the report to be taken to its logical conclusion; all those culprits must be brought to book.

“The path you are treading is the right path, whoever rises up to do the right thing must be allowed to continue.’’

Omar said the National Assembly members were the true representatives of the Nigerian people and must be allowed to do their work.

The President of the Trade Union Congress (TUC),Mr Peter Esele urged the National Assembly to ensure that Nigerians were not denied their freedom in the name of anti-people law.

He said that the congress would ensure that those indicted in the fuel subsidy report were prosecuted.

According to Esele, sovereignty of the Nigerian people resides in the National Assembly.

However, contrary to the unanimous decision of the members of House of Representatives to prosecute culprits on fuel subsidy scandal, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke, has revealed that the federal government cannot prosecute the people indicted in Lawan’s probe report over the management of the fuel subsidy.

He said Lawan’s report was just a ‘fact-finding’ mission.

A statement from the office of AGF yesterday stated that the government would need relevant agencies to conduct necessary investigations before it can commence the prosecution.

According to him, “government must be guided by the dictates of the rule of law and due process as required of any democratically elected and responsible government. In this regard, the need to ensure that thorough investigations are carried out by relevant law enforcement agencies cannot be overemphasized.”

He noted that the exercise carried out by the legislature is “mainly fact-finding.” He further pointed out that the report of the ad-hoc committee and the resolutions adopted by the House of Representatives, were yet to be transmitted to the executive arm of government.

“Nevertheless, when the report and accompanying resolutions are received, the relevant law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies will commence the tedious process of sieving through the report, with a view to assembling all the essential ingredients required to sustain criminal charges that may be filed as a result of such investigations” he added.

He stated that “experience has shown that whenever our law enforcement agencies are stampeded to arraign suspects, the end result is usually the discharge of such suspects by the courts ostensibly for want of evidence.”

“Nigerians must therefore allow our law enforcement agencies to conduct painstaking investigations that will ultimately satisfy the standard of proof required in criminal cases.”

He however admitted that the allegations contained in the subsidy probe report deserve serious action on the part of all those with oversight responsibility over the agencies and persons concerned.

Adoke urged Nigerians to have faith in the processes being undertaken and to patiently wait for the outcome of the investigations and subsequent prosecutions that may flow from the fuel subsidy probe and the on-going probe by the Senate.

He told a non-governmental organisation, ‘Save Nigeria Group’ (SNG) that has given the government a two-week ultimatum for prosecution of all those indicted in the report that the threat to embark on demonstrations and strike  would only “compound the problem and divert attention as well as the energy that would otherwise have been channeled into productive use by law enforcement agencies”

Adoke reiterated government’s commitment to anti-corruption as he recalled the President’s initial reaction to the report of the fuel subsidy probe, saying that “any person found wanting will be prosecuted irrespective of the person’s standing in the society.”

He therefore enjoined all Nigerians who are concerned about the revelations from the fuel subsidy probe report to be “patient and exercise restraint while  essential processes are carried out by appropriate agencies.”

“As Attorney General of the Federation, I swore to uphold the Constitution and I am therefore not oblivious of the constitutional responsibility placed on my shoulders to ensure that those who contravene our laws are held accountable through the legal process” he stated.