Fiscal irresponsibility now appears to be a regular occurrence in Nigeria with holders of public offices, especially members of the National Assembly (NASS) being indiscriminate in the allocation and usage of tax payers’ funds. This is  matter has become one of urgent national importance. 

Over the last few months, there has been a series of accusations against holders of public offices as regards financial management and display of fiscal irresponsibility in their various offices. Instances include mismanagement of public funds, extra-budgetary expenditures, unaccountable spending, and sheer defiance of financial rules and regulations with impunity. These carefree actions have led to underfunding of essential public services, economic instability, and a diminished public trust.  

Although Nigeria generates a tidy sum as revenue, public resources can no longer cater to the needs of the nation as mounting debts have led to perennial deficits in the budget. This has grossly affected the economic situation of the country and citizens who have been fed with different platitudes and admonished to continue to endure are now getting fed up. 

Selective Sacrifice….

While the citizens are told to bear the brunt of the nation’s economic downturn, public officials seem to be feeding fat. The national assembly is at the forefront of this as there has not been a clear and concise record of their earnings. Over the years, there has been clamour for them to declare their earnings publicly but they have continuously turned deaf ears to the calls. Instead, more and more of the lawmakers are coming out with different figures, making it more difficult to understand what exactly is going on in the national assembly. 

Recently, Sen. Kawu Sumaila  (NNPP, Kano South) made the headlines when he disclosed that the monthly running cost of office for senators is N21 million. “My monthly salary is less than N1 million. After deductions, the figure comes down to a little over N600,000. Given the increase effected in the senate, each senator gets N21 million every month as running cost,” he said in an interview he granted the BBC Hausa Service. Kawu‘s submission is not the first as some other senators have also disclosed how much they earn per month and the figures are not correlating with the official stipulation of their salaries. 

Earlier in 2018, Shehu Sani, a former senator from Kaduna state had revealed that he and his colleagues receive N13.5 million as running cost each month.  Sani affirmed that the running cost was in addition to the over N700,000 monthly consolidated salary, allowances, and funds allocated for constituency projects.

READ ALSO: PROTEST: 50% Reps’ salaries slash is mere window dressing

RMAFC clears…fouls the air

Shortly before Kawu‘s disclosure, the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) publicly declared the official paycheck for each of the lawmakers in the senate. Speaking on behalf of the commission, its chairman, Muhammed Shehu, clarified that each senator earns N1,063,860 monthly (both salary and regular allowance).

 

He made this known in a statement  released on the commission’s website where he revealed further that regular allowances are paid together with basic salary while non-regular allowances are paid as at when due. Non- regular allowances such as furniture allowance (N6,079,200:00) and severance gratuity (N6,079,200:00) are paid once in every tenure while the vehicle allowance (N8,105,600:00) is an optional loan option which the beneficiary must pay before leaving office. But with Sen. Kawu’s disclosure, citizens are unable to tell whether the commission is telling the whole truth regarding the salaries and allowances legislators earn in Nigeria. 

Oby calls out the NASS

 In addressing this apparent display of fiscal irresponsibility, former minister of education, Oby Ezekwesili, has once again called the attention of the lawmakers to the need for transparency as much as possible especially at a time like this when all eyes are on the authorities. She made this call on a post on her X account reminding the NASS of a similar call made in 2013 at her keynote speech on “Cost of Governance in Nigeria” at a conference hosted by Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC). She thereafter asked that NASS should hold a public hearing and debate on all that the lawmakers individually collect from their 2024 budget allocation of N344.85 billion.

She said: “I wish to state with absolute respect for our lawmakers and our institution that it will be more valuable and enriching for our democracy if instead of the abusive language of their recent reaction, the NASS immediately offered me and the rest of the Nigerian public, the opportunity of a public hearing on their budgetary allocation and the very relevant issue of their remuneration. Doing so would be consistent with global practice across countries of the world where emphasis is on tenets of open budget to enable citizens to track to the disaggregated level all use of public resources across every arm and level of government.” She further assured that she will make herself available to the NASS as soon as it decides to host a public hearing on this and other related issues of the lawmakers’ interest.

Unaccounted statutory transfers to NASS… 

Statutory transfers are appropriations set aside for government institutions within a budget. These transfers are backed by the constitution and cannot be altered or reviewed by the presidency or executive arm of government.

Each year, a chunk of the annual budget is reserved for the statutory transfers and the national assembly gets a large percentage of that amount. This has given rise to grave concerns in different quarters of the country as the national assembly does not explicitly state how this money is being used.

The statutory transfer to the NASS has increased tremendously over the years reaching the highest in 2024 with an amount pegged at N344.85bn. The refusal to publicly disclose the details of this amount has led to calls for the national assembly to do better. It is expected that the lawmakers lead by example and be transparent and accountable for every penny they spend as other agencies of the government are watching to imitate their steps.

READ ALSO: Senate accuses state governors of misappropriating funds

Presidential “Thrift” Jet 

Amidst the growing public indignation in the country,  the presidency has gone ahead to purchase a new jet as a new addition to the presidential fleet, a decision which many deem frivolous and insensitive considering the precarious situation of the country. 

According to Bayo Onanuga, the president’s special adviser on information and strategy, the new jet is anticipated to save Nigeria millions of dollars annually in both maintenance and fuel costs, providing a more sustainable and economical option for presidential travel. The jet replaced the 19-year-old Boeing B737-700 (BBJ) bought under the tenure of former President, Olusegun Obasanjo. The jet was purchased just after the nationwide protest which rocked the nation and many Nigerians have criticised the timing given that the economy is experiencing a downtime and citizens are lamenting the rising cost of living. 

Interestingly, the jet purchase is coming on the heels of other questionable expenditures such as the N5 billion for the purchase of a presidential yacht, N28 billion luxury cars for the president, the first lady, and the renovation of the vice president’s residence, among others. As expected, Nigerians are not taking this lying down. 

Nigerians reacts to the spending…. 

Nigerians have taken to social media to express their concerns for these indiscriminate demonstration of fiscal irresponsibility by the government and their displeasure at this latest acquisition by the government.

The reactions range from asking questions on transparency to sarcasm and outcry on the spendings. 

Call for stronger oversight  

Following this development, there have been calls for a stronger oversight function by the national assembly. Unfortunately, this is also a long shot as the NASS itself is guilty of the misdemeanour of fiscal irresponsibility. 

Still addressing the fiscal irresponsibility of the NASS, Oby Ezekwesili once again wrote a piece on her X account berating the NASS for their insensitive spending over the years and warning of its looming repercussions. 

“The worst display of fiscal rascality is when political and public leaders of a country that is highly overburdened with debts of all kinds choose to spend scarce public resources on prestige projects and luxuries. Imagine the @NGRPresident and his vice,  @NGRSenate and @HouseNGR of @nassnigeria and the governors of mostly unviable 36 States enjoying obscene luxuries while asking the poor  “to sacrifice for the future”.  Something will have to give someday soon, because this level of unjust governance is frankly not sustainable,” she said.