The House committee had investigated Mrs. Oduah after she directed the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authroity, NCAA, an agency under her supervision to purchase two bulletproof cars at a cost beyond her official approval limit as minister.
The contract breached the federal appropriation and public procurement laws, as it was neither budgeted for by government nor was it publicly advertised and bided for.
Mrs. Oduah claimed she did nothing wrong as funding for the cars, made available for First Bank, was arranged to comply with her spending limit and relevant laws. She said the purchase was not done in her name.
At its plenary Thursday, the House approved a recommendation asking President Goodluck Jonathan to “review the continued engagement” of Mrs. Oduah.
The House also called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to further investigate other officials involved in the scam and the car supplier, Coscharis Motors.
In an immediate reaction, Mrs. Oduah said she was “disappointed and shocked” at the decision. She said the lawmakers brushed aside a “deluge” of evidence to implicate her.
“We are shocked and disappointed that in spite of the deluge of representations and evidences provided by the Aviation Minister, Stella Oduah and ail invited stakeholders on the matter, the House would reach conclusions that have only confirmed that there was a hidden Agenda in the entire exercise from the beginning,” a statement by the minister’s office said.
