Politics
That Bayelsa Lawmakers’ Pension Bill
One thing that is becoming very outstanding in Nigerian politics is the issue of insatiable lust for money which normally in sane societies will cost some people their jobs in elective offices.
If we take a look at the recent ignoble law passed by the Bayelsa State House of Assembly proposing life pension for members of the House or those who have been legislators since the creation of the state, the move does not only send a cold shiver down the spine but shows that there is sheer greed and accumulated grievances against the working class in the society.
How come that a group of legislators who probably have served for only four or eight years will arrogate to themselves the powers to fix pension for themselves without clearly thinking of the consequence. Are they also implying that those who served as commissioners and special advisers should also have life pensions in the scheme of things?
However, it was a cheering news that the state Governor, Seriake Dickson refused to assent to such a self-serving and anti-people bill. The request for such a law was not only nauseating but leaves a very bad odour in the political atmosphere in the country because, if that law had been signed into law, then, trust Nigerians with their copy-cat approach to issues of individual interest, other legislative assemblies nationwide would have started passing such laws. And even councillors at the local government level will have no alternative than to pass such laws too, making themselves and council chairmen to enjoy similar financial benefits.
When the 1999 Constitution was promulgated into law, it was only the office of the President and Vice President that were covered under this law but sadly, the first set of governors from 1999 to 2003 set a bad example by arm-twisting their legislative houses to pass favourable pension laws for them, and this is the genesis of what we are seeing today.
A House of Assembly is supposed to be a hallowed chamber where people-oriented laws are supposed to be made and it is also a place where problems that affect the people or even an individual can be addressed but today what we are experiencing is that it is a place to address only members’ welfare.
The legislators should note that their office is an elective one, they did not write a letter of application for the job and they don’t have any promotion examination to go to the next grade level. In short, they don’t have a retirement age limit but can re-contest for elections as they deem fit.
Please, someone should tell them that politics should not be left to jobless people or the idle minds but to those who have work experience and have something to do to earn a living before venturing into politics. If this notion of life pension…God forbid comes to stay in Nigeria with such huge sums of money approved, what signal then are we sending to the rest of Nigerians, … every Tom, Dick and Harry that is jobless and without any work experience will struggle either by hook or crook to venture into politics with the aim of contesting for the legislative assembly.
In the First and Second Republics, all the members of the legislative assembly including council chairmen and councillors were not lazy people but had well paid jobs before venturing into politics. The likes of Dr. Nwafor Orizu, the then President of the Senate, Rt. Hon Rosebury Briggs, Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly in the Second Republic was a successful lawyer in private practice for many years before he entered the murky waters of partisan politics.
All these people and their colleagues at no time advocated for free and easy money from government to take care of their youthful and productive age. If we take a careful look at the age bracket of members of most state houses of assembly, we will hardly see anyone that is above 60 years of age which is an indication that those who want to benefit from this largese are people mostly in either their 30s or 40s … what a tragedy.
Again, a cursory look at the productivity level of some members shows that they have not contributed anything meaningful by either initiating bills or intellectually debating issues affecting the state or their constituencies and sometimes even on television, we see some legislators dozing or sleeping while debates on serious matters affecting the society are going on, yet they want pension for life.
For democracy to grow, we need to elect into office people of substance, people with integrity, individuals who by their pedigree have something to offer society in the area of quality law making and selfless service that is worthy of emulation.
Why is it that when we as Nigerians borrow good ideas from foreign climes, our domestication of such ideas leaves a very bad example for future generations? If we say we are practising a presidential democracy modelled after the United States of America, what stops us from imitating the good sides of such democracy rather than making selfish laws that will only benefit us?
Even in America, legislative business cannot be compared to that of Nigeria. There, legislators pay house rent and do not live in staff quarters and are not chauffeured around in official cars but here in Nigeria, despite all the largese that is spread around such offices, they are still not satisfied but yearn for more. I think one of the solutions to such demands for life pension should be a review of the Constitution to make legislative duties part-time so as to make the offices less attractive to people who are not really cut out to serve the public.
It seems that the military interegnum between 1983 to 1999 really did a lot of damage to our psyche as a nation and that is why the quality of legislators the electorate have been sending to the houses of assembly especially in some states have been deteriorating every four years. The vibrancy and maturity we experienced between 1992 to 1993 and 1999 to 2003 are no longer there.
Our houses of assembly should sit up, look beyond members’ individual interest and learn once more to be honourable not just in name but also in their legislative duties. Nigeria or the various states are not an inexhaustible gold mine or crude oil field where free cash can be gotten to cushion the lavish lifestyle of an individual, what we need are people with ideas that can fashion out modalities of how to tackle the myriad of problems bedeviling our society like unemployment.
This is because if we keep quiet with the way things are going, our inactions will later turn to haunt us in future.
For rejecting that obnoxious bill on pension for legislators, the Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson has not only saved the people of the state from embarrassment but also people from other states from modern day financial recklessness.
Tonye Ikiroma-Owiye
The event, jointly organised by LP and ADC to publicly acknowledge the movement of party members, was first scheduled to hold at the LP secretariat in Idimu.
However, chaos erupted when more than 100 suspected thugs reportedly stormed the premises, forcing party members and officials to flee.
Eyewitnesses said the attackers, some armed with knives, canes and other dangerous objects, assaulted individuals they encountered during the invasion.
The assailants were also heard chanting hostile slogans, declaring that LP and ADC were not welcome in Lagos State.
Several party members sustained injuries in the process, while party property, including furniture and flags, were vandalised.
Despite the disruption, officials of both parties quickly relocated the programme to an alternative venue, the Eco Centre Event Hall in Egbeda, in a bid to continue the ceremony.
Speaking on the incident, the LP Chairman in Alimosho, Mr Olanrewaju Olushola, popularly known as Heritage, condemned the attack, describing it as unprovoked and alarming, especially with the 2027 general elections approaching.
“What is most painful is that most of my members sustained varying degrees of wounds. This is in spite of the hoodlums going into our party secretariat in Alimosho and destroying our furniture and flags,” he said.
Mr Olushola clarified that the defection itself had already taken place, stressing that Saturday’s gathering was merely a symbolic ceremony to inform the public of their decision.
According to him, nearly all LP members in Alimosho, including the party’s leadership structure, had collectively agreed to move to the ADC.
Also speaking, the party’s Secretary in Alimosho, Mr Moses Akujuobi, explained that plans for an open defection ceremony had earlier been halted by the police, who cited the absence of formal approval.
He said the organisers had reached out to the Area M Commander, ACP Abaniwonda, who reportedly informed them that only the Commissioner of Police could authorise political events in the state.
“Incidentally, we could not reach the CP, but we informed the DSS, after which we went ahead since it wasn’t a rally but a quiet ceremony,” Mr Akujuobi said.
He added that the situation became more tense upon arrival at the initial venue.
“When we got to the venue this morning, we were shocked to see police vans with heavily armed policemen. They informed us that we cannot hold the event and referred us to the police commissioner.
“While we were at it, the hoodlums besieged the place and began to beat people, leading to our deserting the venue,” he explained.
Mr Akujuobi said party officials subsequently contacted members by phone to proceed to the second venue in Egbeda, where the programme resumed briefly.
“We, however, began to contact our members through phones to move to the second venue, which is the Eco Event Centre, and everyone witnessed what took place here.
“The hoodlums got wind of our second venue and equally attacked us, beating up our members again,” he added.
He noted that the decision to defect to the ADC was driven by internal leadership challenges within the Labour Party and protracted legal disputes affecting the party.
Shortly after the hoodlums vacated the second venue, several police vans carrying armed officers reportedly arrived at the location.
The Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) has strongly rejected calls by the Supreme Council for Shari’ah in Nigeria seeking the removal of the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, over comments he allegedly made on genocide.
The Fellowship described the demand as unjustified and a threat to constitutional freedoms.
In a statement signed by its National Secretary, Bishop David Bakare, the PFN insisted that Prof Amupitan, like every Nigerian, has the constitutional right to express his views on matters of national concern, irrespective of the public office he occupies.
According to the PFN, the comments attributed to the INEC Chairman were made in his personal capacity and had no link whatsoever with his official responsibilities or electoral duties.
The Fellowship stressed that elections and electoral activities were not involved in the matter, arguing that there was no basis to connect the alleged comments to Prof Amupitan’s role as INEC Chairman.
“We strongly oppose such calls because Prof. Amupitan, as a Nigerian, has the right to make comments on what he observes to be happening in the nation, regardless of his appointment or assignment,” the statement read.
The PFN said it condemned “in every ramification” the suggestion that the INEC Chairman should be removed from office on the basis of his personal views, warning against attempts to punish public officials for expressing opinions outside the scope of their official duties.
The Tide source reports that the Fellowship also cautioned against what it described as a growing tendency to interpret national issues through religious lenses, noting that such an approach only deepens divisions and undermines peaceful coexistence.
“We must resist the temptation of profiling or judging people based on their religious beliefs or positions. Prof. Amupitan has a right to bear his mind, and this should not be at the cost of his job,” the PFN added.
The PFN called on all stakeholders to exercise restraint, understanding and mutual respect in national discourse, particularly on sensitive issues.
It emphasised that unity and peace must remain paramount in addressing national challenges.
The Fellowship reaffirmed its commitment to fairness, justice and mutual respect, urging that these values guide public engagement and responses to issues affecting the country.
In A Statement Issued On Saturday, Mr Obiorah Ifoh, The Factional Spokesperson, Described The Decision Of The Electoral Body As Strange.
Mr Ifoh Also Said The Sacked Factional Leadership Of The Party Will Protest The Action Of INEC.
Stating That Judgment Of The Court And The Decision Of INEC Will Not Stop Its Members From Putting Up A Strong Appearance In The Forthcoming 2027 General Election, Mr Ifoh Noted Legal Redress Would Be Sought By LP.
He Said, “Some Persons Who Are Applauding The Impunity By Some Politicians Should Retrace And Do Some Introspection, Because This Was How In The Past They Applauded Injustice In Our Democracy Because They Were Beneficiaries.
“At The End Of The Day, When Their Enthroned Leaders Began To Abuse Power, They Started Complaining.
“For Us In Labour Party, Our Faith Is Strong That The Appellate Court Will Do The Right Thing And Therefore We Advise Our Members To Remain Calm. We Will Continue With The Struggle To Take Our Party From The Godfather,” Mr Ifoh Said.
He Also Stated That The Labour Party Is A Party Formed On The Basis Of Social Democracy Where No One Man Is Permitted To Appoint Everybody.
According To Him, It Is Against The Party’s Principles For “One Man To Sit At A Place And Gather Everybody And Appoint Everybody From The National Working Committee To The State.
“That Is Impunity Of The Highest Order. This, I Believe, Negates The Principles Of The Party.
“If We Say There Is No Party Ideology In Nigeria, This Is How It Starts. We Are Very Sure That It Will Be Quashed On Appeal,” He Added.
Mr Ifoh Also Described The Celebration And Excitement Showcased By Senator Nenadi Usman And The Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti As Temporary.
He Said Dr Otti, Senator Usman And Their Cohorts’ Names Which Were Already Listed On INEC’s Portal Will Be Short-Lived.
“It Is For A Short Time. Their Victory Is Pyrrhic And There Is Nothing To Celebrate Because Doomsday Is Closer Than They Will Imagine; Which I Believe Will Be Very Catastrophic For Them.
“Moreover, It Is Very Clear That The Appointment Of The Caretaker Committee Did Not Go Through The Normal Procedure. Proper Notice Was Not Given In Line With The Party Constitution And The Electoral Act,” He Said.