The Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation, and Fiscal Commission (RMFAC) has recommended an upward review of the basic salaries of political and judicial officeholders, a move which has not gone down well with Nigerian Labour unions.
The Chairman of the commission, Alhaji Muhammadu Shehu, who was represented by the RMAFC commissioner from Kebbi State, Mrs Rakiya Tanko-Ayuba, made this disclosure yesterday during the presentation of the reviewed remuneration package of political and judicial office holders to the state Governor, Dr. Nasir Idris.
Commenting on the proposed salary increase, the organised labour described it as provocative because of the fuel subsidy removal pain Nigerians were going through.
Africa Today News, New York reports that the reviewed salary will require legislation by the national and state assemblies before its implementation.
The commission stated that the last review was done in 2007, which led to the 2008 Act on the remuneration of political office holders.
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It stated, ‘The commission, having considered that the consumer price index of some selected baskets of commodities have collectively grown by an average of 371% from 2008 to 2022, the current annual basic salary of all categories of political, public and judicial office holders in the country is adjusted upward by 114 percent. ‘
The agency disclosed that it recommended that existing allowances of political office holders be maintained, while three new allowances were introduced for judicial office holders.
These include allowances for a professional development assistant, a long service allowance, and a restricted lifestyle allowance.
The commission explained that the reviewed remuneration packages required ‘legislation by the National Assembly’ for beneficiaries at the federal level and the Federal Capital Territory, while the review for those in states and local governments would need legislative backing by state assemblies.
It admitted that the review would lead to an increase in personnel cost of government at all levels, adding that the remuneration packages were inputs from workshops it held on February 1.
The commission further explained that the review was in line with the provision of Paragraph 32(d) of Part 1 of the Third Schedule of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Government (as amended).
It said: ‘It empowers the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation, and Fiscal Commission to determine the remuneration appropriate for political office holders, including the President, Vice President, governors, deputy governors, ministers, commissioners, special advisers, legislators and the holders of the offices mentioned in Sections 84 and 124 of the Constitution of the Federal Government.’
It said the last review of the remuneration was carried out in 2007, which culminated in the “Certain Political, Public and Judicial Office Holders (Salaries and Allowances, etc) (Amendment) Act, 2008.
‘Sixteen years after the last review, it is imperative that the Remuneration Packages for the categories of the office holders mentioned in relevant Sections of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) should be reviewed.
‘Pursuant to the above, Your Excellency may please recall that on Wednesday, 1st February 2023, the Commission held a one-day zonal public hearing on the review of the remuneration package simultaneously in all the six (6) geo-political zones of the country.
‘The exercise aimed at harvesting inputs or ideas from a broad spectrum of stakeholders.’
But commenting on the said report, the RMAFC Public Relations Officer, Christian Nwachukwu, clarified that the rate of the salary increase had not been fixed.