Peter Obi, ex-governor of Anambra State, Thursday, stated that the cost of keeping convoys by Nigerian governors runs into millions and what they earn as take home allowance was far more than what senators collect.
This came at the wake of Senator Shehu Sani representing Kaduna Central telling the public that a Senator collects N13.5 million running cost on a monthly basis.
The statement also came on a day members of the House of Representatives refused to disclose their salaries and running cost.
Obi, who spoke as a panelist at the dialogue organised by Ripples Centre for Data and Investigative Journalism in Lagos, told the audience that if he reveals how much a Nigerian governor earns, the outrage would be hotter than what trailed the N13.5 million running cost paid monthly to senators.
”But in Nigeria, I can tell you because I’ve been there, the cost of just keeping convoys alone is in millions. And when people ask me why am I saying these things, I tell them that even if we made mistakes yesterday, can’t we correct it today?”
“What is the essence of a bulletproof car? Anyone who wants to kill you would come when you are out of the car. For eight years, I didn’t use it, and they didn’t kill me,” Obi said.
He said: “None of you knows what a governor earns; quote me anywhere if you know you won’t be here.
”It is something you can’t imagine. You just know the one of senators, and you are shouting, but what if you know that of the governors?”
Obi said what a public office holders earned in America was modest, adding that “America’s GDP is way above Nigeria’s but an American senator earns $174,000 (about N50 million) a year and you can imagine what his Nigerian counterpart earns in a month.
“In America, governors earn according to their state. The governor of California is the highest paid in America, and he earns $192,000. The smallest state earns $70, 000.
Obi also noted that politicians were fond of making promises they could not fulfill when voted into power.
He said: “You told us that you are going to solve a problem and we voted you, and now you are telling us that you met a problem, what do you expect to meet?
“You shouldn’t tell us the story of what you met there, we do not expect 100 percent result, but 100 percent effort. We voted you because you said you are going to solve this problem.”
Meanwhile, lawmakers in the House of Representatives have declined to disclose their salaries and running cost.
Most members of the the lawmakers expressed angst when they were contacted on the issue.
Recently, Shehu Sani, senator representing Kaduna central, disclosed that apart from the basic monthly salary of N750,000, each senator gets N13.5 million as “running cost”.
Sabi Abdullahi, spokesman of the senate later confirmed his claim, adding that “almost all holders of elective and appointive offices have running costs allocated to their offices and that cannot be said to be part of their salaries”.
Abdulrazak Namdas, spokesman of the lower legislative chamber, refused to clarify what his counterparts at the Senate said.
Speaking on the issue, Namdas said: “Democracy is not only about lawmakers…why should I disclose what I earn as a lawmaker.
“I’m not talking about the running cost of lawmakers. I can’t talk on that for lawmakers in the House of Representatives because we have done that before. Why should I disclose it? If you think it is a public information, then go to the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RMAFC,.
“Do you know the salary of a minister? Is he not a public official? Why are you bothering on our own? Democracy is not about only legislators.
“I cannot say this is what I earn because you don’t know the salary of a minister, and they are public officials too. But if a member of the House of Representatives says he earns this amount, then I can clarify.”
When told that the public is interested in knowing the earning of the lawmakers, he said: “If people are asking questions, let them be asking. It is natural for them to ask questions.
“The people don’t want to know about legislators alone. They also want to know about the executive and judiciary. So, why are you only asking the legislators?”
Jerry Alagboso, a Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, lawmaker from Imo state, feigned ignorance of his earnings.
Asked to give details of the earnings of lawmakers in the lower legislative chamber, he said: “I don’t know anything about that (the earnings).”
In his response, Abubakar Garba, an All Progressives Congress, APC, lawmaker from Adamawa, said “I am not supposed to talk about that.”
Aina Akinola, also a PDP lawmaker, from Ekiti State, asked that the enquiry be directed to Namdas, saying “he (Namdas) is the image maker of the House; go and talk to Namdas, he is the person you should talk to.”
