In a statement
today by Timothy Adewale SERAP deputy director the organization said that,
“While we appreciate the expressed commitment by Saraki to transparency and
accountability of the National Assembly, and the rare opportunity to dialogue
with him, we remain deeply concerned that the leadership of the Senate has
unfortunately not satisfactorily addressed the damaging allegations
by Professor Itse Sagay, Chairman Presidential Advisory Committee against
Corruption (PACAC), that a Nigerian Senator gets N29 million in monthly pay,
and over N3 billion a year.”
According to
the organization, “There is an apparent discrepancy in some areas between what
Saraki said at the meeting and what the Senate is doing in practice to improve
transparency of its operations and accountability of members. For example,
the Senate President’s response to Sagay’s allegations was simply to refer
SERAP to the National Assembly budget for 2017, which is available on its
website. However, a careful study of the document shows that it contains only
some general information and not specific details that respond directly to
allegations raised by Sagay.”
The statement read in part: “The
meeting with Saraki raises more questions than it answers. The Senate budget on
its website is incomplete. The absence of specific details on salaries and
allowances of each senator not only makes analysis difficult, it also points to
underlying weaknesses in monitoring and transparency mechanisms.”
“Without
including some level of details, Nigerians may see the published National
Assembly budget as nothing more than window-dressing. SERAP hopes that the leadership
of the Senate doesn’t want this to be the case---and we certainly see no reason
why it should be the case. As we have noted, improved transparency on the
exact salaries and allowances of senators and indeed members of the House of
Representatives is in the interests of all.
“In SERAP’s
view, rather than referring us to the seemingly incomplete National Assembly
budget, the Senate President should have provided a line-by-line response to
Sagay’s allegations. It’s important that the leadership of the Senate provides
additional information that is lacking from the published budget if it is ever
going to satisfactorily clear the air on the issues.”
“Continuing
failure and/or refusal to provide a line-by-line response to Sagay’s
allegations is counter-productive. Although the issues of transparency in the
salaries and allowances of members of the National Assembly may seem like
sensitive issues, they are exactly the kind of issues the Senate and House
Representatives need to urgently address and clarify if Nigerians are ever to
trust their lawmakers.”
“As the
2017 National Assembly budget does not appear to record all allowances received
by senators, it’s in the best interest of the Senate to now publish a
line-by-line response to Sagay’s allegations rather than simply providing a
blanket denial. If the Senate is disputing Sagay’s figures on the salaries and
allowances of its members it should at least provide what it considers to be
the current amounts, including on ‘hardship allowance’. One way the Senate can
do this is by moving swiftly to publish details of senators’ payslips and other
relevant documents on the salaries and allowances of members for Nigerians to
compare and judge.”
“In addition,
we agree with the Senate President that there are corruption issues within the
executive that need to be fully and effectively addressed. But the reality of
corruption in the executive branch of government doesn’t mean that allegations
of corruption in the National Assembly especially as they relate to budget padding
and constituency projects, should be minimized or ignored. The leadership of
the Senate should have provided examples of how the Senate is preventing
corruption in the budget process and initiatives like constituency projects
rather than shifting the blame as to why corruption is so pervasive in the
implementation of such projects.”
“Further, the
Senate President’s call on Nigerians to report to the Senate allegations of
corruption that directly affect them or which they witness is warmly welcomed.
We hope the Senate will keep to its promise on this, and that reports of
corruption cases that Nigerians bring to it will be objective, fairly and
effectively addressed and that any such process is completely transparent.
However, citizens may not have the trust and confidence to embrace the Senate
Anti-Corruption Reporting Mechanism until the leadership satisfactorily
addresses the lingering doubts on the exact salaries and allowances of its
members.”
“The National
Assembly is in a uniquely strong position to act as a catalyst in the fight
against corruption. But the rhetoric of the leadership of the Senate on
transparency and accountability needs to be matched by reality.”
It would be
recalled that Mr. Bamikole Omishore, the Special Adviser to Saraki on New
Media, had said on Sunday in Abuja that he would contact SERAP and other CSOs
for a meeting to give more details on the yearly earnings of senators. Omishore
said, “The attention of the office of the President of the Senate has been
drawn to demand for more details regarding the earnings of senators of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria. Having released the breakdown of the National
Assembly budget, the most comprehensive in the history of Nigerian Senate, it
seems the release of pay slips is yet to clarify earnings of Nigerian senators.
“The Senate
President has agreed to a roundtable with SERAP and other CSOs to enlighten
them and answer genuine questions regarding the matter,” Mr. Omishore also
said.
Earlier,
Professor Sagay that had alleged that a Nigerian Senator gets N29 million in
monthly pay. The details of the salaries and allowances as provided by
Professor Sagay are as follows: basic salary N2,484,245.50; hardship allowance,
1,242, 122.70; constituency allowance N4, 968, 509.00; furniture allowance N7,
452, 736.50; newspaper allowance N1, 242, 122.70. Others are: Wardrobe
allowance N621,061.37; recess allowance N248, 424.55; accommodation
4,968,509.00; utilities N828,081.83; domestic staff N1,863,184.12;
entertainment N828,081.83; personal assistant N621,061.37; vehicle maintenance
allowance N1,863,184.12; leave allowance N248,424.55; severance gratuity N7,
425,736.50; and motor vehicle allowance N9, 936,982.00.
Sagay’s
allegations prompted SERAP to write Saraki, stating that, “The ‘sky will not
fall’ if details of a Nigerian Senator’s salaries and allowances are published
on a dedicated website. SERAP believes that releasing the information on
salaries and allowances of members of the Senate would encourage a nuanced,
evidence-based public debate on what would or should be a fair salary for
a member of the Senate.”
The
organization said that “It is by making transparency a guiding
principle of the National Assembly that the Senate can regain the support
of their constituents and public trust, and contribute to ending the country's
damaging reputation for corruption.”
SERAP
statement read in part: “Transparency is a fundamental attribute of democracy,
a norm of human rights, a tool to promote political and economic prosperity and
to curb corruption. For the Senate, practicing transparency should start with
the leadership being open to Nigerians on the salaries and allowances of
members.”
“SERAP
strongly believes that it is by knowing exactly how much their lawmakers earn
as salaries and allowances that members of the National Assembly can remain
accountable to Nigerians and our citizens can be assured that neither fraud nor
government waste is concealed.”
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