Abuja-based lawyer and rights advocate, Pelumi Olajengbesi, has described the planned salary increase for Nigeria’s president, governors, federal lawmakers, and ministers as selfish, insensitive, and an insult to struggling citizens.
In a statement on Thursday, the Managing Partner of Law Corridor said the move by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) exposes once again the greed and lack of empathy of Nigeria’s political class.
“Some of the policies of the ruling class remain unthinkable, the latest being the move to increase the pay of political office holders,” Olajengbesi said. “It is an affront to the suffering of Nigerians who have endured hunger and intense economic pressure since the removal of petrol subsidy in May 2023.”
He lamented that while ordinary Nigerians battle inflation and wage stagnation, politicians who already enjoy “jumbo salaries and allowances” are being considered for even more perks. According to him, many households have been forced into a survival formula of “0-1-0” meals daily, while lawmakers swim in millions.
Olajengbesi cited revelations by top lawmakers about the scale of political earnings: former Speaker Yakubu Dogara once disclosed receiving N25 million monthly; ex-Kaduna senator Shehu Sani revealed senators pocketed N13 million monthly, a figure that has since grown to over N21 million; and Senator Orji Uzor Kalu admitted to taking home N14 million monthly.
Beyond salaries, he pointed to constituency project allocations, noting Borno senator Ali Ndume and Cross River’s Agom Jarigbe both confirmed that lawmakers received between N200 million and N500 million annually for projects.
“It is utterly unthinkable that RMAFC would even consider increasing the pay of this set of political office holders who already rake in hundreds of millions yearly,” Olajengbesi said. “If they have any honour left, they should reject the proposed pay rise.”
He urged Nigeria’s leaders to emulate Liberian President Joseph Boakai, who recently cut his own salary by 40% as a gesture of solidarity with his people.
