Politics
Scandalous Jumbo Pay
The Economist of London in its recent edition published the salaries of lawmakers in some countries across the globe with Nigeria and Australia topping the chart. Although the Governor of Central bank of Nigeria, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Samusi had in the past made a startling revelation about the jumbo pay being received by the Nigerian lawmakers, he did not go the extra mile to furnish the Nigerian public with the figures.
According to the Economist’s report a Nigerian lawmaker receives an annual salary of $189,000 (N30 million) while his counterpart in Germany earns $119,500; France ($85,900); Pakistan ($3,500); Saudi Arabia ($64,000), Malaysia ($25,300); Sri Lanka ($5,000); Spain ($43,900); Ireland (120,400); Canada (154.000); New Zealand ($112,500) Singapore ($154,000); Sweden ($99,300) and Australia ($201,200).
Others are Kenya ($74,500); Ghana ($46,500); Indonesia ($65,800); South Africa ($104,000); Brazil ($157,600), Thailand ($43,800); India ($11,200); Italy ($182,000); Bangladesh ($4,000); Israel ($114,800); Hong Kong ($130,700); United States ($174,000); Japan ($149,000) and Norway ($138,000)
The report that analysed the data obtained from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) shows that the federal Iawmakers earn more than their counterparts in 27 countries that were mentioned earlier. It is pertinent to note that each lawmaker receives $189,000 annually as basic salary which is 116 times the country’s gross Domestic Product (GDP) per person per annum while that of a British parliamentarian is 2.7 times the country’s GDP per person. Again, this excludes the numerous and fabulous allowances that are paid to the Nigerian lawmakers at the expense of 70 per cent of their compatriots who are living below poverty line as a result of the poor state of the nation’s economy.
A situation where a whopping N150 billion is allocated to the National Assembly in the 2013 budget is thought provoking, given the fact that Nigeria imports virtually everything from other countries of the world for local consumption.
Our leaders are utterly insensitive to the plight of the Nigerian masses who are lauguishing in protracted penury. This explains why the recurrent expenditure is always higher than the capital expenditure in our budgetary provisions.
No meaningful development can take place in a country that is bereft of basic infrastructure occasioned by selfish and visionless leadership. More worrisome is the fact that it takes tears and blood for the so-called leaders to take positive steps that will engender growth and well-being of the generality of the people. The Nigerian masses must embark on protest for government to fund the education sector; provide electricity, pipe-borne water and petroleum products; fix deplorable roads and implement the N18,000 minimum wage for workers.
Of course, the lawmakers are not alone in the mindless exploitation of hapless Nigerians. All other public officers in the mainstream of governance are equally involved in this financial recklessness.
It is for this reason that a growing number of Nigerians are taking to politics. Because of the juicy nature of political offices in Nigeria politics has become a do-or-die affair as aspirants will do everything humanly possible to win elections. The consequence therefore, is poor leadership and economic woes that have become the lot of the nation that is endowed with abundant natural resources.
Speaking at a workshop organised by the National Union of Textiles, Garments and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN) in llorin, the Kwara State capital recently, the Vice President of Nigeria Labour congress (NLC), Comrade Issa Aremu urged the lawmakers to demonstrate stemanship by reviewing downwards their annual emoluments.
“Their salary is not even linked to their productivity. If they refuse, we must call them to order. Their constituents should call them to order. They can’t be holier than the Pope.
“If they refuse to reduce their salary, we must take the battle to their constituencies. Anything short of this will make us to take to the streets and NLC is ready to lead the way.
“How can a legislator earn about $189,000 (N30 million) as basis salary per annum ? Our lawmakers are the second highest paid in the world next to those in Australia”.
He said it would take a worker earning the monthly minimum wage of N18,000 about 140 years to save N30.24 million “If the worker saves his whole salary.
He said it would take an average worker 667 years to be at the same level with a lawmaker, whose total emolument per annum was put at N46 million.
Aremu who is also the General Secretary of NUTGTWN said strike could be the most potent weapon to be employed if the workers failed to heed their advice.
“This is a persuasive approach now, but if they refuse, we will march to their constituencies, and if they still pauperise Nigerians, we will take to the streets to show them the power of the electorate over the elected. How can a Nigerian legislator be earning more than the American President?”
The NLC Leader described as paradoxical, the condition of Nigerians whose country is ranked 12
th in the hierarchy of oil-producing nations but could seldom afford daily meals.
Some political observers have argued that the Federal lawmakers lack the moral authority to exercise their constitutional prerogative of oversight in view of the dubious income they forcefully appropriated to themselves.
They therefore, drew the attention of the lawmakers to paragraph 32 (d) of the third schedule of the 1999 Constitution as amended. That section provides that the Revenue mobilisation and fiscal Commission shall have power to “determine the remuneration appropriate for political office holders, including the President, Vice President, Governors, Deputy Governors, Ministers, Commissioners, Special Advisers, legislators and the holders of offices mentioned in section 84 and 124 of this constitution”.
It is clear that the federal lawmakers did not comply with the constitutional provisions in relation to their remuneration.
To avert public opprobrium the lawmakers should heed to NLC’s advice by reviewing downwards their basic salary. They should also ensure that other political office holders do not contravene the law as well. Our leaders should lead by example and not by precept. Please be guided.
Politics
Reps Constitution Review Committee Holds Zonal Hearing For Rivers, C’River, Akwa Ibom In Calabar
A press statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the Cross River State Governor, Mr Linus Obogo, disclosed that the Calabar Centre — designated as Centre B — will host representatives and stakeholders from Cross River, Rivers, and Akwa Ibom States.
The public hearing is scheduled to take place on Saturday, July 19, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. at the Transcorp (Metropolitan) Hotel, Calabar.
The initiative, according to the statement, is designed to promote inclusive dialogue and capture the aspirations of Nigerians from all regions.
It aims to serve as a platform for citizens to contribute meaningfully to the ongoing national efforts to refine and strengthen the country’s legal and institutional frameworks.
“Citizens, civil society groups, professional bodies, traditional rulers, and other interest blocs are invited to participate in this landmark engagement aimed at advancing a more just, equitable, and responsive Nigerian Constitution,” the statement read.
The hearing forms part of the broader review process of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), and is seen as a strategic move toward fostering national unity and addressing structural legal issues within the federation.
For the first time since 2022, when then-presidential aspirant Alhaji Bola Tinubu declared he made former President Buhari Nigeria’s President in 2015, Mr Mustapha dismissed the claims, stressing that the merger only contributed about three million votes in addition to Buhari’s existing 12 million votes in the North.
He insisted that former President Buhari’s integrity, national stature, and disciplined messaging were central to the breakthrough, not the three million votes from the merging parties, which he described as insignificant.
Speaking on the role of the merging parties, particularly President Tinubu, the leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Mr Mustapha, who was the keynote speaker at the launch of the book ‘According to the President: Lessons from a Presidential Spokesman’s Experience’ authored by Mallam Garba Shehu, described the impact of the votes from other merging parties as very insignificant.
In attendance were former Head of State Yakubu Gowon, chair of the event; immediate past Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; SGF George Akume, who represented President Tinubu; PDP’s 2023 presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar; former Chief of Staff to Buhari Ibrahim Gambari; elder statesman Babagana Kingibe; former governors Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Chris Ngige (Anambra), Rauf Aregbesola (Osun), Raji Babatunde Fashola (Lagos); former ministers Solomon Dalung and Sunday Dare; former Army Chief Tukur Buratai, and Bayo Onanuga, President Tinubu’s spokesman, among others.
According to Mr Mustapha, “I do not intend to stir up any controversy. The merger in 2013 was midwifed to create a Buhari presidency. Let us look at the statistics. In the 2003 election, it was the Obasanjo-Buhari presidential contest where Buhari recorded 12.7 million votes. In 2007, it came to 6.6 million, and it went back to 12.2 million in 2011.
“When we were conceptualising the merger, what would give us a headstart? Obviously, it was at the back of our consciousness that the merger with the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), though it had only one state, the ACN had six states, ANPP three states, and when you sum up the total votes that we had as the presidency in 2015, the aggregate of the total votes was 15.4 million.
“So, basically, what we brought to the table after the merger outside the Buhari 12.5 million votes was three million. Before turning to that presidency, it is important to recognise the former President’s role in reshaping Nigeria’s political trajectory.
“In early 2013, as the leader of the CPC, Buhari formally requested and supported the creation of a CPC merger committee, part of a broader coalition-building process that brought together the ACN, ANPP, APGA faction, and elements of the ruling party through the breakaway ‘new PDP’ group. His endorsement and participation, along with other party leaders such as President Tinubu and Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, lent credibility and direction to the merger, helping to unify disparate party factions under the banner of the APC. That coalition-building paved the way for the first democratic defeat of an incumbent ruling party in Nigeria’s history.
“President Buhari’s integrity, national stature, and disciplined messaging were central to that breakthrough. No account of President Buhari’s tenure would be complete without acknowledging the extended periods he spent on medical leave. These moments, while politically delicate, were also telling of his leadership philosophy and personality,” he said.
In his remarks, President Tinubu promised to build on the legacies of former President Buhari, stressing that “nation-building is a relay. The efforts of one administration lay the foundation for the next.
“In this regard, I acknowledge the efforts of my predecessor, President Buhari, and assure all Nigerians that the reform-oriented path he initiated will be consolidated and strengthened under this administration. Our Renewed Hope Agenda is inspired by the desire to build a resilient, just, and inclusive Nigeria—a nation that delivers dividends of democracy to all its citizens”.
Speaking during an appearance on live television on Wednesday, Mr Omokri alleged that Mr Obi’s statements were misleading and damaging to the country’s economic prospects.
Mr Omokri said some investors currently operating in Nigeria were considering exiting the market due to Mr Obi’s remarks.
“That is not true. He doesn’t rile me up. I rile him up. The reason why I came here is because I’m a patriot. Peter Obi lied. You know, foreign direct investors are watching your programme, who are making investment decisions not to come to Nigeria. There are foreign investors in Nigeria that are making investment decisions to leave Nigeria because of the lie he told.
“One of the lies he told is that President Tinubu has borrowed more than the administrations of Yar’Adua, Jonathan, Buhari. That is a blatant lie”, Mr Omokri said.
To buttress his claims, Mr Omokri referenced figures from the Debt Management Office (DMO), maintaining that President Tinubu had actually reduced Nigeria’s external debt burden since assuming office.
“I have here with me data from the Debt Management Office, and Nigerians who are watching can go to DMO.com and search Debt Management Office, Nigeria State of Indebtedness 2015.
“As of 2015, Nigeria was owing a total of $63 billion. When Buhari was leaving office, Nigeria was owing $113 billion. Today, from the DMO, our debt has gone from $113 billion to $97 billion, meaning that Tinubu has reduced our debt by over $14 billion.
“We should be appreciating this man. Yet Peter Obi came here and lied to the Nigerian people. He took the debts and translated them into naira to make it look like the debts have increased”, he said.