Do not say I tell you that daily newspaper allowance is above monthly of average Nigerian worker

But Nigerians can bring expected change without violence!

By allcitynews.ng

Before you can take a step remember that you are the change Nigeria is waiting for.

You are the change agent. You are the one that change and turn things around for good.

What cannot be achieved through sustained long street protests can be done by you without violence.

Rather than continuous street indefinite protests, the we should adopt the electricity people, the way and manner with which they distribute their bills.

Electricity people use to go from house to house in sharing and distributing their monthly bills.

We need to move from door to door to educate people about good governance and why we need to #EndSARS.

We need to let them know one pack of noodles isn’t worth their votes.

We need to enlighten the people from house to house against selling their future with one half-kilo of rice, sachet of salt or N1000.

As they are doing stomach infrastructure, we are doing a soup like kitchen to feed them and also educate while at it.

They are catching people with sweet but unfulfilled promises. We can use our mouth to convince them from allowing themselves to be cajoled with empty or near-zero electioneering campaign promises.

Use your vote to remove those who are jumping from state Government houses into Senate thereby collecting double salary from governorship to Senate.

Organised labour, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) have been calling for downward review of the entitlements of political office holders.
Imagine 21 senators currently receiving pensions from government as ex-governors and deputy governors.

The current senators who once served as governors among others are:
Ibrahim Gaidem of Yobe,
Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau of Kano,
Kabiru Gaya of Kano,
Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom,
Theodore Orji of Abia,
Abdullahi Adamu of Nasarawa,
Sam Egwu of Ebonyi,
Shaaba Lafiagi of Kwara,
Joshua Dariye of Plateau
Jonah Jang of Plateau,
Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko of Sokoto,
Ahmed Sani Yarima of Zamfara,
Danjuma Goje of Gombe,
Bukar Abba Ibrahim of Yobe,
Adamu Aliero of Kebbi,
George Akume of Benue
Isiaka Adeleke of Osun and others

We can call for less expensive government by telling government to cancel the current practice whereby one person is collecting money in two offices. Imagine for serving a state as Governor for just eight years, he is collecting pension.

Meanwhile he is still collecting salary as a senator. It should be that once you are elected a senator or appointed a minister, you must forfeit any pension accruing to you from government at any level until you vacate office.

The National assembly is made up of the Senate and House of Assembly or House of Reps. The house is made up of 109 Senators and 360 Honourable members known as house of assembly.

See the breakdown of salaries of senators in a country where many are not able to get N1000 a week.

In year 2020 while reviewing it upward called it hardship allowance.

This includes the basic salary and other allowances that accrue to them monthly.

Basic Salary
Hardship Allowance
Constituency Allowance
Furniture Allowance
Newspaper Allowance
Accommodation Allowance
Vehicle Maintenance Allowance
Severance Gratuity
Motor Vehicle Allowance
Wardrobe Allowance
Recess Allowance
Utilities Allowance
Entertainment Allowance
Per Assistant Allowance
Leave Allowance
The above are the basic salary and allowances accrued to a seating senator in Nigeria for 2020. monthly and annual salaries of senators as in 2020

1. Basic Salary 2.48 million 29.76 million
2. Hardship Allowance 1.24 million 50 per cent of Basic Salary 14,88 million
3. Constituency Allowance 4.97 million 200 per cent of Basic Salary 59.64 million
4. Furniture Allowance 7.45 million 300 per cent of Basic Salary 89.40 million
5. Newspaper Allowance 1.24 million 50 per cent of Basic Salary 14.88 million
6. Accommodation Allowance 4.97 million 200 per cent of Basic Salary 59.64 million
7. Vehicle Maintenance Allowance 1.86 million 133 per cent of Basic Salary 22.32 million
8. Severance Gratuity 1.86 million 133 per cent of Basic Salary 22.32 million
9. Motor Vehicle Allowance 9.94 Million 400 per cent of Basic Salary 119.28 million
10. Wardrobe Allowance 621,000 25 per cent of Basic Salary 7.45 million
11. Recess Allowance 248,000 20 per cent of Basic Salary 2,97 million
12. Utilities Allowance 828,000 33 per cent of Basic Salary 9,93 million
13. Entertainment Allowance 828,000 33 per cent of Basic Salary 9,93 million
14. Per Assistant Allowance 621,000 25 per cent of Basic Salary 7,45 million
15. Leave Allowance 248,000 20 per cent of Basic Salary 2,97 million.

Grand total of monthly and annual salaries of Senators in Nigeria  29,480,000 353,760,000
The figures in the table above is the prevailing salary structure of senators in Nigeria as at 2020. From the table we can see that a senator earns N29,480,000 monthly and over 353 million annual salary. Note that these salaries are the net figures, that is, tax and other deductions have been made already.

Recall that the current monthly minimum wage as at 2020 stands at N30,000. A salary which is even yet to be implemented by more than 60 per cent of the 36 states and 774 local governments in Nigeria today and a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria earns over 982 times of the newly approved minimum wage of N30,000 monthly of the electorates.

Daily Newspapers Allowance of N46, 000 is more than a month salary of average civil servant (N30,000).

Hence the President of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ayuba Wabba and Comrade Quadri Olaleye, Trade Union Congress (TUC) cried out as unacceptable that in a country where one month salary of N30,000 cannot buy a bag of rice of N35.500, yet a daily newspaper allowance for a senator or House of Reps is N46,000 .

Hence Wabba and Olaleye still venting their anger over this happening called for dialogue because this cannot continue if we are to remain an indivisible entity.