The rumbling and anger across Nigeria on compensation of Nigerian politicians, especially Nigerian National legislatures and State Houses of Assemblies is an issue that should be of great concern to Nigerians at home and abroad and foreign allies who cares about sustainability of Nigerian democracy. These legislatures gulps tax payer’s money with impunity that burgles the mind. Nigerian is a country where majority of the population lives on less that $3.00 a day. Estimated per capita income as of 2010 by world bank is $2,398.73 per person per annum. Federal legislature just passed a law setting minimum wage at ₦18,000 ($114.73) per month. A lot of state governments are kicking against this meager monthly salary, implying that they cannot afford to pay the minimum wage. I can understand small businesses not been able to afford it.
Against the above backdrop, Nigerians are once again questioning the appropriateness of the jumbo pay of public officers, especially cabinet ministers and national legislatures. Nigerian legislatures earn more than their contemporaries in more developed and wealthy nations in spite of the alarming poverty level and serious underdevelopment in the nation. This issue is back in the national headline following the report that members of the National Assembly (senate and House of Representatives) are planning to increase their yearly remuneration that caused protest by some civil society groups and other segments of Nigerian population. The legislatures have denied some of the allegations pertaining to their remunerations.
The governor of Nigerian Central Bank, Lamido Sanusi while delivering a lecture at the convocation ceremony at Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo State, in late November 2010 stated that 25 percent of the overhead in the nations annual budget is spent on the National Assembly. As expected, National Assembly members raised hail and hurled him before the senate committees on Appropriation and Finance where he rejected call by the lawmakers to apologize for giving false figures to Nigerian public. He doubled down on his comment, backed up his claim with figures from 2010 Nigeria Budget Office which stated that “Total government overhead was ₦536,268,490,280. The total overhead of the National Assembly was ₦136,259,768,112, which is exactly 25.1 percent of the Federal Government expenses”. They let him go when they realized he could not be intimated. National Assembly salary and allowances have clearly become financial burden on Nigeria resources.
Transform Nigerian Movement notes that “ Nigerians need to know that in addition to the regular and legitimate salaries and allowances of ₦17 million ($113,333) and ₦14.99 million ($99,933) which senators and Representatives were collecting yearly and irregular allowance of estacode, duty tours etc, they were also collecting ₦192 million (1.28m) and ₦140million ($0.93m) respectively in illegal quarterly allocation which is not provided for by the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC). Based on the new package approved by the RMAFC, each of the 107 senators (excluding the senate president and his deputy) collects ₦11 million in basic salaries and regular allowances every year, while members of the House of Representative gets ₦9.9 million. This means that even with the reduced salary package, a Nigerian senator still get paid ₦11 million ($73,333) in regular salaries and allowances annually and ₦152m ($1.03m) in four quarterly allocations, making a total of $1.11 million plus irregular allowances like estacode and duty tour allowances. We now hear more stories that senators and members of the House of Representatives reportedly take home up to ₦351 million and ₦147 million per person respectively. Overall, the National Assembly spent a whopping ₦138 billion in expenses according to the 2010 budget.” Note that overhead figure provided by Transform Nigeria Movement is almost the same as that of Governor of Central Bank figure.
Going by the above figures, it means that a Nigerian senator overall earns at least 8 times as much as American senator and as much as 3 times the American president. Nigerian senator takes home at least $1.40 million which comprises of $1.28m quarterly allocation, $0.113m regular salaries and allowances compared to about $0. 174m (₦21million) American senator and members of the House of Representative takes home. United Kingdom’s parliament member earns about ₤64,766 (N15m). This means that Nigerian federal legislatures are paid more than twice what British member of parliaments makes per annum. Further check reveals that Nigerian senate president takes home about ₦250m quarterly or ₦83.33m per month. Senate deputy president get ₦150m per quarter or ₦50m a month, earning in 4 months, six times what the British prime minister earns in a year. David Cameron, the British prime minister makes about ₤190,000 per annum (₦44m) while United States president earns $400,000 per annum.
Professor Itse Sagay (SAN) echoed the fact that Nigerian federal lawmakers are the highest paid in the world. Fresh information is now coming to light that each of the non- returning members of the Lagos state House of Assembly is believed to have received ₦52million ($331,497.37) severance pay while the re-elected members got ₦42million ($267,747.88). Nigerian Compass Newspaper obtained this information. In contrast, severance pay for Kwara state speaker is ₦3,279750 ($20,908.24), and his deputy will receive ₦2,891965 ($18,436.13) and each member gets ₦2,674,450 ($17,049.48). In Ondo state, each of the 26 members will receive ₦4.011m ($25,569.92). Kwara and Ondo states severance pay is not unreasonable. Lagos state’s payment is nothing but brazen looting of the state’s treasury.
This brazen loot of Nigeria treasury is clearly unsustainable in the long run. It is a mortal threat to democracy and unity of Nigeria. Corruption and these brazen acts will make Nigerians loose confidence in democracy, which will overtime open door to dangerous demagogue who will exploit the anger and sense of hopelessness to his or her selfish end. President Jonathan must not allow such selfishness on the part of the legislatures and other politicians to continue. He needs to restructure and mandate Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) to review salary structure for all political office holders and eliminate or cut unreasonable compensation. People go into Public service to serve the public not to loot the public treasury.