BEVERLY HILLS, October 02, (THEWILL) – Hon. Simon Karu, a member representing Kaltungo/Shongom Gombe, Federal Constituency in the Nigeria House of Representatives has disclosed that each member of the Lower Legislative Chamber receives about N9.3 million monthly as emoluments.
Karu said the money includes their monthly salary of N800, 000 and an additional N8.5m as office running costs.
During an Independence anniversary Lecture on ‘Fix Nigeria @60’, at the Umaru Musa Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja, Karu in his “Sustainable and Efficient Democracy: Issues on Accountability and Transparency in Governance” blamed constituents high demand for the high emoluments of the legislatures.
He said: “The official salary of a member, House of Representatives which I also receive monthly is N800, 000. I told you I was going to say it. Why don’t you wait for me to say it? The office running cost of a member of the House of Representatives is N8.5m. Those of you who know, know that I said exactly what it is. The problem is what the constituents demand and when you don’t meet, they begin to call you names.”
“Just before I walked to the stage, I received three emails from my constituents demanding for money and demanding for jobs, when you don’t respond, it becomes an issue”, the lawmaker added.
However, chairman of the House Committee on Treaties, Agreements and Protocols Ossai Nicholas Ossai, countered Karu’s claim. He instructed the audience to disregard the information the Gombe lawmaker provided.
Ossai, who is one of the oldest members of the House said “I have never received such a salary since I came to the National Assembly and I have been in the National Assembly before him.”
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Speaking on how to fix Nigeria, Senator Dino Melaye said Nigerians need to reboot Nigeria because “If you get the fight against corruption right every other thing will be fixed”.
Dino advocated the establishment of the ‘National Budget Office’ to address budget padding. “Nigeria will continue to have problems with budgeting until it creates such an office in the National Assembly. We need a National Budget Office. Nigeria is the only country without such office and until we have it budget padding will not stop,” he said.
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