DEMOCRACY: The Bledding Of Nigeria


Huge Bills, Little Result
By Alabi Williams

RECENTLY, the Revenue Mobilization, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) recommended a reduction in the outlandish entitlements that political office holders have enjoyed since 1999. The review recommends the cancellation of the President and Vice Presidents' severance gratuities, which stood at 200 per cent of their annual salary. Their hardship allowance was reduced from 50 to 30 per cent.

The Commission equally proposed the sack of personal assistants appointed by political office holders across the country, contending that such appointments were not recognised by the Constitution.

Similarly, a reduction in the flamboyant lifestyle of the leadership of the National Assembly was suggested. Consequently, the number of cars on the fleet of public officials, such as that of the Senate President and House of Representatives, which was cut to six instead of the eight and seven cars; while accommodation, vehicle loans, furniture and other allowances of governors and their deputies were reviewed downward.

One of the earliest signs that this democracy would be expensive was seen in the huge salaries paid to council chairmen and councilors. Apart from their salaries, they were entitled to a long list of allowances, some of which are frivolous. For instance, while a council chairman is allowed to sign a huge weekly telephone allowance, his/her secretary equally collects similar allowances. The figures began to sound ridiculous when senior teaching staff of universities began to compare their salaries with those of councilors, who were all over the place in the 774 council areas in the country.

From there, whispers filtered into town of what legislators were taking home as allowances. Furniture allowances, constituency allowances, car loan allowances, accommodation cost and all manners of perks were padded to make life more beautiful for the legislators, who were tasting the juicy side of democracy. There is an average of 20 legislators for each of the 36 States of the federation.

At the NASS, the cost of sustaining the lawmakers has been neck-breaking, for a country that was hugely indebted to international creditors, lacking basic infrastructure and good packages for the welfare of the people. The basic salary of a Senator is N2,484,242.50 per annum while a member of the House of Representatives receives N1,985,212.50 per annum besides other very generous allowances.

At a time when developed economies were looking for ways to cut down on recurrent bills, a new emolument was retroactively passed by the National Assembly earlier in the year, thus increasing the President's take home pay to N10.899 million; that of the Secretary to the Federation and Ministers was jerked up to N5.907 million.

The President/Governor lives in a Government House where they do not pay rent, nor pay utility bills. They live lavishly and stupendously. Yet, they still collect allowances for services already paid for by the people. The President/Governor is entitled to have a long list of assistants, who are also entitled to have their own assistants. Some are special, others are senior, in addition to being special. The role an assistant plays in a government depends on the usefulness he/she served during the party primaries, the campaigns and at the election. They are compensated with offices, paid for from the Federation Account.

At the Ministries and agencies of government, recurrent expenditures are subjected to a 'bleeding' process that will put the last kobo to stressful use. The budgets are cleverly padded to accommodate the most superfluous. For instance, a typical budget in a government establishment would have these envelopes: motor vehicle fuel cost, generator fuel cost, cooking gas fuel cost, plus other fuel cost. 'Other fuel' is a parlance for frivolity.

Another envelop would contain items such as, maintenance of motor vehicles, maintenance of office furniture, maintenance of building-office, maintenance of building, residential, maintenance of other infrastructure, maintenance of office equipment, maintenance of plants/generators, and other maintenance services.


RECENTLY, the Accountant General of the Federation's report for 2006 gave some insight into why the cost of running the National Assembly has continued to remain astronomical. The report showed how 40 Senators refused to retire amounts to the tune of N1.62 billion advanced to them; how, various mandatory taxes totaling N158 million were deducted from capital, recurrent and salary accounts, but only N109 million was remitted to the FIRS; how 108 payment vouchers for amount totaling N1.2 billion were raised and were not produced for audit examination; how N3.9 million was refunded as out-of-pocket expenses to an officer on time payment vouchers dated May 4, 2006 for purchase of customized gift items; how and officer was paid over N7 million as refund of out-of-pocket expenses to members of the Commonwealth Games in Manchester, UK between July 28 and August 4, 2002.

A proposal from the President to the RMAFC in February had sought to adjust the salaries of political office holders downwards in the face of what he said was the declining revenue flow into the national treasury. At that time, some Nigerians had interpreted the pay cut gesture as a belated effort, considering that for 10 years, political office holders had plundered the economy.

Some Senators had, in February, argued that pay cut would amount to just scratching the surface and an attempt that would amount to little or no reprieve for the over-stretched economy. Senator Joy Emordi was of the view that a pay cut might not necessarily lift an economy that was rested on pervasive corruption in the bureaucracy and among the political class. Uche Chukwumerije also expressed concern that, unless Ministers' undeclared revenues from contract kickbacks were affected, a pay cut in salaries and allowances per se might not do the magic.

Now that the adjustments have been made, would it not amount to an economic amnesty that will not repair the damage already inflicted on the public purse? Cost of living has jumped astronomically since 2007. Manufacturers pay hugely for electricity to power their machines. Property/estate developers pass the high cost of building materials to the people, even as government is endlessly setting up panels to look into the high cost of cement and other infrastructure.

Maxi Okwu, chairman of the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) said the people are not getting commensurate value for the gargantuan national resources expended on political office holders. He gave the NASS as a clear example, where "for all the money spent running into trillions in the past two years, only a handful of bills had been passed into law."

"What the report of the RMAFC has done is to completely vindicate us," he said. "Again, we feel that their recommendations and cuts do not go deep enough. The solution does not lie in mere tokenism. It is only in this country that over-pampered public office holders at taxpayers' expense would talk about hardship allowance; a local councilor who ought to be on part-time talking about accommodation allowance in his rural community and personal assistants. Governor Danjuma Goje of Gombe State recently paid himself a severance/gratuity after serving his first term."

It is curious, that while debates are ongoing about reforming the electoral system, not much is said about the high cost of running a democratic system and how to prune it down considerably. Some have advocated a return to the regional parliamentary system, where legislators may serve on part time basis. Others often wonder the advantages in a bicameral legislature with huge bills.

While the polity continues to bear the burden, it is hoped that the economy does not collapse.

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