The lawmaker representing Kano South, Senator Sumaila Kawu, has revealed that he earns over N21m monthly as a total take-home package.
He made the revelation in a chat with the BBC Hausa Service on Wednesday morning.
Sumaila, who was elected on the platform of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), narrated that his actual salary, as fixed by the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), is less than N1m and comes down to about ₦600,000 after deductions.
He spoke 24 hours after RMAFC, the body empowered by law to fix salaries and allowances of political office-holders, claimed that each of the 109 senators in the upper chamber receives a total of N1.06m in salary and allowances per month.
RMAFC Chairman, Mohammed Shehu, said this as a form of clarification in response to recent controversies over the real amount each lawmaker earns per month.
A breakdown of their monthly earnings revealed that each Senator collects a monthly salary and allowances of N1,063,860, consisting of a basic salary, N168,866:70; motor vehicle fuelling and maintenance allowance, N126,650:00; and personal assistant, N42,216:66.
Others include domestic staff,126,650:00; entertainment, N50,660:00; utilities, N50,660:00; newspapers/periodicals, N25,330:00; wardrobe, N42,216,66:00; house maintenance, N8,443.33:00; and constituency allowance, N422,166:66.
Shehu in the statement noted, “The commission also wishes to use this opportunity to state that any allegation regarding other allowance(s) being enjoyed by any political, public office holder outside those provided in the Remuneration (Amendment) Act, 2008 should be explained by the person who made the allegation.
“To avoid misinformation and misrepresentation of facts capable of misleading citizens and members of the international community, the commission considers it most appropriate and necessary to request Nigerians and any other interested party to avail themselves of the opportunity to access the actual details of the present remuneration package for political, public and judicial office holders in Nigeria published on its website: www.rmafc.gov.ng.”
But in his BBC Hausa interview, Kawu said, “The amount of salary received per month is less than N1 million. If there are cuts, it comes back to about N600,000. In the senate, each senator is given N21 million every month as the cost of running his office.”
The lawmaker said the allowances include office running, newspaper money, local travel and others.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo had stirred up a controversy when he tackled National Assembly members over their allowances.
He spoke in Abeokuta, Ogun State Capita,l while receiving House of Representatives members led by Ikenga UgoChinyere.
“In your case, with all due respect, you’re not supposed to fix your salaries. But you decide what you pay yourself, the allowances that you give yourselves (including) newspaper allowances.
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“You give yourselves all sorts of things, and you know it is not right. It is immoral, (yet) you are doing it, the Senate is doing it, and you are beating your chests about it. In some cases, the executive gives you what you’re not entitled to. You all got N200 million (each).”
The lawmakers had responded saying RAMFC fixes their allowances.
The allowances of federal lawmakers had been shrouded in controversy until a former Kaduna Central Senator, Shehu Sani, had disclosed that each Senator collects a monthly running cost of N13.5m in addition to the monthly N750,000 prescribed by the commission in the 8th Senate which he was part of from 2015-2019.
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