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There have been complaints that political office holders in Nigeria are receiving inadequate and out-of-date salaries, thus the government is thinking about raising their pay.
Muhammad Shehu, who is the chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), said this during a news conference in Abuja on Monday.
Shehu pointed out that the monthly salaries of president Bola Tinubu and ministers have been static at N1.5 million and less than N1 million, respectively, since 2008.
In a country with more than 200 million people, you’re handing over N1.5 million to the president every month. He made it clear that everyone thinks it’s a joke.
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In addition, he stated that the salary gap between federal agency heads and political office holders was unreasonable, noting that some agency leaders earn as much as twenty times more than ministers or the Attorney-General of the Federation.
Millions of Nigerians are fighting inflation and growing poverty, and workers are still demanding a decent wage, thus the move has sparked fresh debate in the country.
Many see this as a turning point in the discussion of leadership, public trust, and the real price of government in the biggest democracy in Africa.
According to XANDERTECH, not all states in Nigeria have enforced the federally mandated minimum wage of N70,000 per month, which is disproportionately high for those working for local governments and elementary school instructors.
You may remember that in 2022, the NBS reported that 63% of Nigerians, or more than 133 million people, were living below the poverty line.
Sanitation, healthcare access, food security, and housing all continue to be areas of high deprivation, according to the NBS report. Furthermore, 72 percent of the population lives in poverty in rural areas, whereas just 42 percent do so in metropolitan centres.
Academic and non-academic unions in Nigeria went on an eight-month strike that same year to call for higher education financing and improved working conditions.
However, research shows that since then, there has been no change in the funding of universities or the wellbeing of university employees.
There is a Nigeria that caters to the needs of corrupt politicians—Don
University of Nigeria senior lecturer Professor Chidiebere Nwachukwu told DAILY POST that the planned salary increase is inappropriate.
Whatever other Nigerians have to say about it, I doubt it would change my reaction. It seems that Nigeria just exists to cater to the avaricious politicians, who are the real beneficiaries, while the general public is utterly disregarded.
So the people who actually put forth the most effort are underappreciated and paid next to nothing, he added.
“I am familiar with the type of discussion that preceded even raising the minimum wage a few months ago, and here we are,” Nwachukwu continued.
The Nigerian people are already protesting the politicians’ use of their pay and other privileges to enrich themselves. No one pays attention to the government employees who accompany these gluttons to the market.
We are aware of the minimum wage in Nigeria. Being an academic, I am aware of the salary of professors. The average salary of a teacher is something I am familiar with. Plus, no one is giving that any thought.
“That’s the real issue; they should focus on that instead of these corrupt politicians who are stealing from our country’s coffers without offering any rationale for their plans.”
Unrest, he said, may break out if politicians were given more attention than workers.
A large sum of money is available to the president. It’s possible that his monthly income will be exceeded by the several allowances to which he is entitled. To my mind, he is already well-equipped.
If we want to avoid the wrath of the masses—that is, a revolution against the ruling class—we must pay attention to the individuals who are now going unpaid so that we might avoid that fate.
It is ruining Nigeria, and we are rapidly approaching that point. Nwachukwu went on to say that the lack of motivation is destroying even the civil service.
“In the past decade, we have not had a government that kept any promise at all,” he continued, an indication that the Nigerian people no longer have trust in the government’s word.
No longer do Nigerians celebrate when their government representatives make pledges.
Everyone has told us to wait it out and believe that things will improve, but in reality, they’ve only gotten worse over the years. They disregard counsel. In the end, they do what makes them happy. Instead of focussing on how to improve our country, they are preoccupied with the next election.
Poor focus – Economist
Political office holders are already among the country’s best-compensated, according to Dr. Samson Simon of ARKK Economics and Data Limited, another analyst who criticised the plan.
He made it clear that MPs are already making significantly more than the ordinary person in the world.
Look at the emoluments that political office holders get—not just the base salary—and you’ll see that they’ve mostly kept up with inflation and devaluation, so I don’t think it’s appropriate.
I get the impression that they’re picking the wrong targets. Politicians do not deserve a salary increase that represents reality; those who do deserve it are the classroom teacher, the college professor, the hospital nurse, the police officer, and the soldier combating rebels, according to Simon.
On a monthly basis, a federal member or senator would receive around N29 million.
His true monthly income is somewhere around N30 million. In US terms, that works out to around $20,000 each month.
The total amount in a year is approximately $240,000. In the wealthiest nations, how many legislators earn $240,000? He asked.
He further said that Nigeria is “not setting its priorities right” as it primarily recruits politicians for financial gain, rather than public service, and that this disparity proves it.
“Why pay a primary school teacher such a small fraction of that and expect them to produce results?” Simon went on to ask. Politicians should not have their salaries prioritised over those of public workers who are already struggling to make ends meet.
All Nigerians, not just politicians, should have their salaries reviewed to ensure they reflect the cost of living. Placing the interests of Nigerian politicians above those of the general public is a mistake.
A lawyer says it’s dishonest.
Olu Omotayo, president of the Civil Rights Realisation and Advancement Network (CRRAN), criticised the plan for being misleading.
Because politicians live “entirely at the expense of government” and the masses are left to struggle, public trust in leadership has diminished, according to Omotayo.
Most government employees in this country do not live pay cheque to pay cheque, therefore it’s clearly an illusion. The government is footing the bill for all those benefits.
There is a travel allowance for when they go abroad. On top of that, they earn a travel allowance for inside the nation.
Therefore, wages are not the problem. Finding ways to reduce spending and allowances is the main concern. You can check how much money has been set aside for a government official’s international trip. Instead of tricking us with pay raises, the government should be closing such loopholes, he added.
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