35 senators have no Bills in two
years to show for over N13b in
earnings
Posted by Bunno Esdiake
Despite receiving more than N13 billion in
salaries, allowances and benefits that clearly
positions members of the Nigerian Senate as
the world’s best paid lawmakers, at least 35
serving senators have not listed a single Bill in
their name since taking office in 2011, an
investigation by The Nigerian Telegraph has
shown.
Between 2011 and June 2013, each senator
drew about N 400 million in salaries,
allowances, and self-allocated bonuses,
according to details of lawmakers’ allowances,
as well as listed earnings for federal
lawmakers stipulated by the Revenue
Mobilisation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC).
For the 35 members, the sum for two years
totals N 13.2 billion, and N41 billion for all 109
members.
But while a majority of the lawmakers have
made fair efforts at delivering in their primary
lawmaking duties, sponsoring at least one Bill
between June 2011 and June 2013, 35 of them
have posted not one.
In that duration, 74 senators, an impressive
figure relative to past years, sponsored and
followed through with a minimum of at least
one legislation apiece. A few presented more
than a dozen Bills, with the Senate Majority
Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba(PDP, Cross River),
sponsoring the highest number, 25.
Other Senators, each with a minimum of 10
Bills are Ben Ayade (PDP Cross Rivers state) –
18 Bills; Ita Enang, (PDP Akwa Ibom) – 13 Bills;
Dominic Obende, (ACN Edo) – 12 Bills; Smart
Adeyemi, (PDP Kogi) – 11 Bills; and Ifeanyi
Okowa, (PDP Delta) – 11 Bills.
At the bottom of the ranking are two states –
Zamfara and Borno – with none of their
Senators presenting a single Bill in two years.
The figures, provided by the Senate’s Business
and Rules committee, which catalogues each
member’s legislative activities from Bills,
motions to petitions, appear a fresh
justification for Nigerians’ perennial concern
about how much their representatives at the
National Assembly actually deliver to justify
their huge annual earnings.
Each Senator, according to RMAFC, is entitled
to N 8.2 million annually or N683,000 monthly
as salaries. This salaries are exclusive of
allowances such as estacodes, cars and
furniture.
But the comprehensive compensation runs far
higher into several millions per quarter of a
year, as the legislators also approve what they
call “running cost” to themselves. For
“running cost”, each senator currently
draws N 45 million quarterly – about N180
million annually, in addition to the “meagre”
salary.
Lawmakers, weary of the public’s outrage over
their pay, are often quick to cite the few
hundreds of thousands monthly as nothing
exceptional or deserving of the aggressive
attention they receive.
But despite the huge pay, quite little has been
delivered on legislation since 2011, according
to the Business and Rules committee.
In all, 342 Bills have been presented to the
Senate within the period; many of them,
however, are non-member Bills sent either by
the executive, for example, budget bills; or
forwarded by the House of Representatives
for concurrence.
Of that number, only 28 bills have been fully
passed by the Senate. Again, out of that of
number, 20 are executive-sponsored. So,
effectively, senators have only delivered fully
on eight bills after drawing over N 41 billion in
earnings since 2011.
The eight bills comprise of two each from
Ndoma-Egba, and the deputy Senate President,
Ike Ekweremadu, (Enugu State); and one
apiece from Chris Anyanwu (Imo State);
Paulinus Igwe (Imo State); Uche Chukwumerije
(Abia State); and Dahiru Kuta, (Niger State).
The Business and Rules Committee chair, Ita
Enang, said the apparently low output
notwithstanding, the Senate recorded
“tremendous achievements” with landmark
bills in its first half of two years.
Some of the “landmark” Bills are Occupational
Safety and Health Bill (Anyanwu); Court of
Appeal amendment Bill (Ndoma-Egba); Act
Authentication amendment Act (Igwe);
Retirement Age of Staff of Polytechnics and
Colleges of Education (Chukwumerije),
Hyperdec Act amendment Bill (Kuta); Federal
High Court Bill (Ekweremadu); Prisons repeal
and re-enactment Act (Ndoma-Egba), and State
of the Nation Address Bill (Ekweremadu).
The two relatively important Bills passed by
the Senate and which could be considered
landmark – Terrorism and Money Laundering
amendment acts – are executive sponsored.
The lawmakers argue that besides Bills, the
Senate has also delivered on other functions
including motions and resolutions on pressing
national issues, confirmation of appointments,
as well as oversight duties on the other arms
of government.
Those without Bills in two years, as
analysed by The Nigerian Telegraph, based
on figures from the Senate committee on
Business and Rules are:
State Senator
1. Adamawa 1. Bindo Jibrilla
(PDP)
2. Anambra 2. Chris Ngige
(ACN)3. John
Okechukwuemeka
(PDP)
3. Bauchi 4. Abdul Ahmed
Ningi
(PDP)5. Babayo
Garba Gamawa
(PDP)
4. Benue 6. David Mark
(PDP)7. George
Akume (ACN)
5. Borno 8. Ahmed Zanna
(PDP)9. Maina
Maaji Lawan (ANPP)
10. Mohammed Ali
Ndume (PDP)
6. Ebonyi 11. Christopher
Nwankwo (PDP)12.
Sonni Ogbuoji (PDP)
7. Gombe 13. Mohammed
Danjuma Goje (PDP)
8. Jigawa 14. Abdulaziz
Usman (PDP)
9. Kaduna 15. Ahmed
Makarfi16.
Mohammed Saleh
(CPC)
10. Kano 17. Kabiru Ibrahim
Gaya (ANPP)
11. Katsina 18. Abubakar Sadiq
Yar’Adua (CPC)
12. Kebbi 19. Mohammed
Magoro (PDP)
13. Nasarawa 20. Yusuf Musa
Nagogo
(CPC)21. Suleiman
Asonya Adokwe
(PDP)
14. Ogun 22. Olugbenga
Onaolapo Obadara
(ACN)
15. Ondo 23. Robert Ajayi
Boroffice
(LP)24. Boluwaji
Kunlere (LP)
16. Osun 25. Olusola Adeyeye
(ACN)
17. Oyo 26. Hosea Ayoola
Agbola (PDP)
18. Rivers 27. Magnus Ngei Abe
(PDP)
19. Sokoto 28. Ahmed
Muhammad Maccido
(PDP)
20. Taraba 29. Aisha Jummai
(PDP)30. Abubakar
Umar Tutare (PDP)
21. Yobe 31. Bukar Ibrahim
(ANPP)32. Alkali
Abdulkadir Jajere
(ANPP)
22. Zamfara 33. Ahmad Sani
Yerima
(ANPP)34. Kabir
Garba Marafa
(ANPP)35. Sahabi
Alhaji Yaú (PDP)
Total number of Bills……342
Executive Bills to Senate…….41
House Bills to Senate…………23 (This figure
does not include all House Bills, but those
passed and sent to the Senate for concurrence)
Senate’s own Bills (ALL)…..273

...still on IMO senators,good job!

Yerima sponsored a bill 4 girl child marriage.

Monumental waste of public fund

hehe lol at chris ngige.not suprised he is among the 35 senators.

You mean all Abia Senators have sponsored one bill or more? Then, I am yet to see the effect of their membership in the Senate except for Chukwumerije.

Bunch of i support the motion.

They are their 4 i second the motion. Shameless politician

CANT STOP LAUGH.

ALL THESE OUR PEN ROBBERS WOULDNT KILL ME WITH LAUGH.

mkpakana odogwu: Monumental waste of public fund

Seconded

Ngwakwe: You mean all Abia Senators have sponsored one bill or more? Then, I am yet to see the effect of their membership in the Senate except for Chukwumerije.

Chukwumerije is very productive in the Senate

Ngige is wasting is time there, am sure that if Dora Akunyili have gone there she would have sponsored some bill.
Ngige is only good in administration,

Ngige should leave that anger party and join apga if that is possible for him and run for the governorship election.

Must every senetor sponsor a bill no matter how useless it is or supporting or disagreeing with one, considering how it will affect the people he/she represents should be the issue here?

Austine.E:
...still on IMO senators,good job!

Paulinus Igwe is rep Ebonyi central not imo as alleged by the uninformed OP.

ARE YOU MAKING LOSSES IN YOUR BUISNESS?DO YOU WANT INNOVATIVE IDEAS AND TRADE SECRET TO IMPROVE YOU BUISNESS? CONTACT US 08164007031 OR MAIL US BSUIB4ME@GMAIL.COM

Dreal1247: Yerima sponsored a bill 4 girl child marriage.

That's incorrect. Yerima opposed an amendment to make child marriage illegal.

Most of these 'sinators' would rather be chit-chatting when their colleagues are raising Bills and just mumble some "ays" and "nays" at the right (or wrong) time.

all those bills hv nt been implemented except 4 yerima