Chairman, Presidential Action Committee on Anti-Corruption (PACAC), Prof Itse Sagay, has said that the basic salary per annum of a Senator is N2,484,000 adding that
“It is not a figure that I arrived at: it is a figure that was printed (for me) and published on the internet with very convincing details”
He lamented that 90% of youths in Nigeria are jobless, thereby involving in crimes such as theft, kidnapping among others, while the Senators earn over N3bn per annum.
“The minimum wage in Nigeria is N18, 000 and the Senate is a group of people who actually vote their own minimum wage for themselves. The President does not determine his wage but the Senate takes a chunk of our budget and gives itself”
Prof Sagay urged anyone who doubts the figures to write to the Senate President asking him to deny or confirm his claims.
He also disclosed that “they collect hardship allowance which is 50 per cent of basic salary, constituency allowance, 200 per cent of basic salary; furniture allowance, 300 per cent of basic salary; newspaper allowance, 50 per cent of basic salary, Wardrobe allowance, 25 per cent of basic salary, recess allowance, 10 per cent of basic salary; Accommodation allowance, 200 per cent of basic salary; utilities, 30 per cent of basic salary, Domestic Staff, 75 per cent of basic salary; entertainment, 30 per cent of basic salary; personal assistant, 25 per cent of basic allowance; vehicle maintenance allowance, 75 per cent of basic allowance; leave allowance, 10 per cent of basic salary; severance gratuity, 300 per cent of basic salary; motor vehicle allowance, 400 per cent of basic salary”.
Meanwhile, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi in a statement dismissed this as a Beer Parlour Rumour, saying
“As an academic, whose creed should be to find facts and make comments based on truth, we believe that Sagay should stop spreading beer parlour rumours about the salaries and allowances of legislators, when he could simply get the facts from the Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Allocation Commission (RMFAC), which is the body constitutionally charged with the responsibility of fixing salaries and allowances of all public officials”.
“Let us make it clear that our salaries and allowances are open books and the details can be taken from the RMFAC by any interested party”
However, Prof Itse Sagay reacting to the senator’s comment said that he spoke the truth stressing that:
“I criticize them for the huge amount of money they are taking out of the country. They are creating a situation, in which Nigeria does not have enough funds”
