…Kano South Lawmaker Contradicts RMAFC’s Disclosure of N1.06m Monthly Salary
Senator Sumaila Kawu, representing Kano South, has disclosed that he earns over N21m monthly as his total take-home package, contradicting the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission’s (RMAFC) statement that each senator receives N1.06m monthly.
The RMAFC had provided a breakdown of senators’ monthly earnings, totaling N1,063,860, including basic salary, motor vehicle fuelling and maintenance allowance, personal assistant, domestic staff, entertainment, utilities, newspapers/periodicals, wardrobe, house maintenance, and constituency allowance.
Senator Kawu’s revelation has sparked controversy, with a wide margin between his disclosed take-home pay and the figures quoted by the RMAFC.
The senator attributed the difference to “cuts” and “a few deductions” by the RMAFC.
The issue of federal lawmakers’ salaries and emoluments has been a subject of controversy, with former President Olusegun Obasanjo criticizing lawmakers for fixing their own salaries and allowances.
During the parley, Obasanjo said, “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.
“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).”
Also, a former Kaduna Central Senator, Shehu Sani, had once publicly disclosed that each Senator collects a monthly running cost of N13.5m in addition to the monthly N750,000 prescribed by the commission.
It would be recalled that the Senate in a Statement on Sunday refuted the claims by Obasanjo stating that they were lies.
