Sen. Ajibola Bashiru (APC-Osun Central) has disclosed that senators in
Nigeria earn less than N1million per month.
Bashiru made the disclosure on Thursday while speaking on the sideline of a
programme organised by the Correspondents Chapel of the Kwara Council of
Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).
He stated that basically, what a senator take-home monthly is N700,000 out
of which car loan of over N8 million is being deducted on a monthly basis.
“What I tell whoever that stands up to say senator collects jumbo pay is
that they can also contest so that you can also collect jumbo pay” NAN quoted
him as saying.
“The truth of it is that the take-home pay of a senator is about N700,000
per month. Aside from it is the car loan of over N8 million which is being
deducted monthly.
“As a senator, you are entitled to six aides who are paid by the National
Assembly Service Commission and they are paid directly into the account. Will
you count that as my salary?
“Also, I am entitled to travel allowance and Eastacode which does not form
part of the salary”, Bashiru said.
On cost of governance, the lawmaker said: “We have about 38 structure
systems in the country – the Federal Government, Federal Capital Territory and
the 36 states of the federation with bureaucracies.
“The personnel cost of MDAs in Nigeria runs into billions if not trillion
of naira. Let’s analyse Nigerian budget and see what goes into personnel.
“We are not focusing on this, but not focusing on salaries of 109 senators
and 360 representatives”.
The lawmaker added that if the National Assembly is scrapped, the country
would only make marginal savings, if at all any savings, in the cost of
governance.