IT IS TIME FOR NIGERIAN POLITICIANS TO START MAKING SACRIFICES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR STATES AND THE COUNTRY – ENOUGH OF THE OUTRAGEOUS RETIREMENT PACKAGES/PENSIONS AND DOUBLE-DIPPING
December 12, 2020 | News
It saddens my heart that every time I look at past and present Nigerian Political leaders at all levels of Government, all I see are a bunch of people who clearly do not understand what it means to SERVE as a Public Servant.
IT IS TIME FOR NIGERIAN POLITICIANS TO START MAKING SACRIFICES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR STATES AND THE COUNTRY – ENOUGH OF THE OUTRAGEOUS RETIREMENT PACKAGES/PENSIONS AND DOUBLE-DIPPING
It saddens my heart that every time I look at past and present Nigerian Political leaders at all levels of Government, all I see are a bunch of people who clearly do not understand what it means to SERVE as a Public Servant. A bunch of people who are not ready to make the needed sacrifices required in the discharge of their statutory duties, so that the society and its citizenry will be better off, while they in turn would leave indelible marks in the annals of history. But for any society and its people to move from one level of development to another, there must be sacrifices that has to be made, especially the ones that will disrupt the comfort that they are used to.
This is why it is a welcome development when it was reported that Zamfara State is cancelling the outrageous retirement packages that they have for their former Governors and Deputy Governors. The Zamfara House of Assembly voted to abolish the law that allowed the payment of ridiculous allowances for their former Governors and their Deputies. This happened when the former Governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari, wrote a letter to the State Government that his N10million ($26,000) monthly allowance upkeep have not been paid for some months. That N120million in a year which is $315,000; just because he’s a former governor. And this is different from other benefits that they get. It is only in Nigeria that we would see the Letter-Headed paper of The Office Of A Former Governor in bold letters. And we can imagine the audacity and heartlessness he had to amend a law just two months to his leaving office, which would allow him enjoy the said N10million monthly pension allowance and other benefits from the State’s purse. He also had the effrontery to write letters to his successor to demand for such payments. That is to show how these Nigerian political leaders are never really interested or passionate about living good legacies that would outlive them and improve the living standards of the common masses. Their ‘primary motive’ of being in Government is wrong in the first place.
To put this in perspective, according to a youtuber, Keeping It Real With Adeola: Let us take a look at salaries and pensions of former governors in America against that of Nigeria. Although, we should not be comparing America and Nigeria because the size of the economy is different. In fact, the size of the economy of just one State in America is bigger than that of Nigeria as a whole. So, we should not even be comparing them. And keep in mind that in the UK, their officials get paid even much less than the American officials get paid, as pension. For America, the annual salaries differ by State because each State is autonomous. So, they have their own rates States-by-State. But it ranges from $70,000 to $201,000 per a year. $70,000 is like N27million, and that is per a year. California is the highest, as they pay their Governors $280,000 per a year, that is about N77million per a year.
That means, even the pension of the former governor of Zamfara State is higher than the salary of the highest paid governor in America. Another thing to keep in mind is that in America, some States have no limitations to the number of terms that a Governor can serve. States like Illinois, Minnesota, New York, Texas, Iowa, and the Mayor of Washington DC and so on and so forth. So, if people keep voting the person, he or she can serve as Governor for even 10 terms if they want. But there are States where you can only serve two terms at a time. Even if you want to contest again after some years, you have to step down first. So, when it comes to Governors’ pensions in America, just as the salaries are different, the pensions are also different. And the State of California for example, a former governor gets paid about $5,000 for every year that he served in office. And the maximum serve limit in California is two terms, that is eight years. That means a governor can only get up to $40,000 per a year as his pension in California. That’s about N15million. Whereas, Zamfara State former governor was collecting N10million EVERY MONTH.
According to lawmakers in Zamfara State, the pension of all their former governor is costing them more than N700million every year. Now, they are happy they can actually use that money to develop Zamfara State and help its economy. And one wonders how have they been doing it? Another good news is, Kwara State, has decided to follow suit. In Kwara State, a former governor is entitled to pension for life, which is an equivalent of the annual basic salary of the incumbent, so whoever comes in after him or her, they get paid the same salary as the sitting governor. On top of that, they get furnished five-bedroom duplex, 300% of their basic salary for furniture allowance, which is replaceable every four years. Free medical treatment for the Governor and Deputy Governor and their immediate families, even if they have to go abroad. Car maintenance fee, driver’s house maintenance fee and 2 cars for the Governor, in addition to one escort vehicle. To be replaced every three years. Is this not ridiculous! The Kwara State pension law also provides former Governors and Deputy Governors domestic staff, including cooks, stewards, gardeners, and two other domestic staffs; and all this people are pensionable. So, not only is the State paying pension to the Governor and the Deputy Governor, the State will also be paying pension to these domestic workers whenever they retire. Let that sink in for a minute. Also, a former Governor of Kwara State is entitled to two SSS details and one female officer. In addition to Eight (8) policemen. While the Deputy Governor is also entitled to one SSS detail in addition to two (2) policemen. No wonder Kwara State is where it has been this whole time.
What you need to also keep in mind is that in Nigeria, so many of our former Governors are doing what we call: DOUBLE DIPPING. They are DOUBLE DIPPING in several places. While they are collecting pensions, which is basically their former salaries and all kinds of benefits, they are now either lawmakers collecting full salary and allowances of a lawmaker, at the same time that they are collecting their pensions. Or they are now Ministers, collecting salaries of Ministers while still collecting their pensions and other benefits as former governors. Either way, many of them are collecting salaries and pensions at the same time. Just imagine the former Governor of Kwara State, Bukola Saraki for example, collecting all these benefits that I just mentioned, while serving as the Senate President then. So, I am really happy that Kwara State Governor has decided to scrap this pension law. But we are still waiting to see if the lawmakers in Kwara State will pass this amendment. It is not enough to say you want to do; you really have to actually see it through. I was also really happy when I saw that the Governor of Lagos State, Sanwo-Olu has promised to do the same thing in Lagos. And just like Kwara State, we are waiting to see if the lawmakers in Lagos will actually follow through. In Lagos State, a former Governor and his Deputy get paid the basic salary of whoever comes in after them, which is about N7.7million per month. And then one residential house. If a Governor serves Two terms, he gets another residential house in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. And then, they get six new cars every three years. How does that even make sense - six cars every three years?
They get free health care for themselves and their family members. This includes if they go abroad for treatment. It doesn’t matter which country they are going to, they pay cash with tax payers’ money. They also get furniture allowance, which is 30% of their annual basic salary, which is about N23.3million. House maintenance allowance which is 10% of their basic salaries at N778,000. They also get utility allowance, which is 20% of basic salary, so that it is N1.5million. They get car maintenance allowance at 30% of their annual salary, that is N2.3million. Entertainment allowance (remember this is former governors), and that is 10% of basic salary at N738,000. They get Personal Assistants, who will earn 25% whatever the Governor’s annual basic salary is. That is N1.9million. And then they get 8 policemen. Two DSS details attached to the Governor for the rest of his life.
Tell me, how is Nigeria supposed to develop with these politicians robbing us point blank. I think that is more than enough for you to digest in one day, because the reality is, this just shows you how our politicians are milking the country dry. These same governors will still owe salaries of teachers and doctors. We have not even started on our lawmakers, that’s for another day. Nigerian Governors and former Governors get paid, not just more than what American and former Governors of America are paid, but they also get paid more than what American Presidents and former American Presidents get paid. Do you know that American President earns $400,000 in a year? That’s about N152million. I mean, just the security votes alone of some of the Governors that we have in Nigeria, is more than that every month. By the time you now know they get paid more than American Presidents. In America, former President also gets a pension of $219,200 every year, and they must pay taxes on that pension.
Similar to this subject issue, recent reports revealed that Delta and Edo State Governments have spent over a whopping N842m on pensions and benefits for just two convicted former governors in the last 12 years. The two former governors, James Ibori of Delta State and Lucky Igbinedion of Edo State, were convicted for embezzling public funds between 1999 and 2007. What baffled me more was the fact that these heartless and wicked politicians: Ibori and Igbinedion, haven stolen their States public funds to a bleeding point, had shortly before the end of their tenure signed laws that would guarantee LIFE PENSIONS and SEVERAL BENEFITS for them and their Successors. As for the former Delta State Governor, Ibori, who "served" between 1999 and 2007, he signed into law the Delta State Governor and Deputy Governor Pension Rights and Other Benefits Law 2005, which was later amended in 2009. That of Edo State is also similar to this.
It is indeed painful that, when Delta State Government have not been able to pay the State pensioners, it still had the audacity to spend public money on those who had stolen/looted Delta State treasury dry. What a shame! How can a government be 'comfortable' in consistently paying the outrageous life pension of a former Governor, who had admitted of being guilty in a UK Crown Court of stealing the State's public? Yet, in the midst of this, that same State Government keeps looking for excuses every now and then, of not being able to pay the pensions of its civil service workers, some of whom have served the State for 35 years. What should we call this? Man's inhumanity against his fellow man or what?
We can only pray that the Delta State House of Assembly would one day 'miraculously' consider towing the same path like its Zamfara and Kwara State counterparts. It is also imperative for those, including the society's elites who still hail and support the said ex-convict like Ibori, in the name of "he is one of our own", they should also realize that it is their children's future and that of the future generations of our society that these people are squandering and wasting away just to satisfy their insatiable greed. If anything, they should be stoned and shamed in public for this evil. We simply cannot continue to fold our hands, keep quiet and allow this anomaly to remain. It is absolute madness!
For real, Nigerians need to wake up and realize that, what we have is mostly criminals in office. Even after they live, they go to another office to still rob us. So, my question to you is; Do you know how much your governor and your former governors are getting in your State? Do you know all the allowances they are getting? Am sure if you do, you would really get angry. The truth is, until Nigeria cuts its outrageous cost of Governance across all levels of Government, we would never achieve the desired development.
Zik Gbemre.
December 12, 2020
We Mobilize Others To Fight For Individual Causes As If Those Were Our Causes
It saddens my heart that every time I look at past and present Nigerian Political leaders at all levels of Government, all I see are a bunch of people who clearly do not understand what it means to SERVE as a Public Servant. A bunch of people who are not ready to make the needed sacrifices required in the discharge of their statutory duties, so that the society and its citizenry will be better off, while they in turn would leave indelible marks in the annals of history. But for any society and its people to move from one level of development to another, there must be sacrifices that has to be made, especially the ones that will disrupt the comfort that they are used to.
This is why it is a welcome development when it was reported that Zamfara State is cancelling the outrageous retirement packages that they have for their former Governors and Deputy Governors. The Zamfara House of Assembly voted to abolish the law that allowed the payment of ridiculous allowances for their former Governors and their Deputies. This happened when the former Governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari, wrote a letter to the State Government that his N10million ($26,000) monthly allowance upkeep have not been paid for some months. That N120million in a year which is $315,000; just because he’s a former governor. And this is different from other benefits that they get. It is only in Nigeria that we would see the Letter-Headed paper of The Office Of A Former Governor in bold letters. And we can imagine the audacity and heartlessness he had to amend a law just two months to his leaving office, which would allow him enjoy the said N10million monthly pension allowance and other benefits from the State’s purse. He also had the effrontery to write letters to his successor to demand for such payments. That is to show how these Nigerian political leaders are never really interested or passionate about living good legacies that would outlive them and improve the living standards of the common masses. Their ‘primary motive’ of being in Government is wrong in the first place.
To put this in perspective, according to a youtuber, Keeping It Real With Adeola: Let us take a look at salaries and pensions of former governors in America against that of Nigeria. Although, we should not be comparing America and Nigeria because the size of the economy is different. In fact, the size of the economy of just one State in America is bigger than that of Nigeria as a whole. So, we should not even be comparing them. And keep in mind that in the UK, their officials get paid even much less than the American officials get paid, as pension. For America, the annual salaries differ by State because each State is autonomous. So, they have their own rates States-by-State. But it ranges from $70,000 to $201,000 per a year. $70,000 is like N27million, and that is per a year. California is the highest, as they pay their Governors $280,000 per a year, that is about N77million per a year.
That means, even the pension of the former governor of Zamfara State is higher than the salary of the highest paid governor in America. Another thing to keep in mind is that in America, some States have no limitations to the number of terms that a Governor can serve. States like Illinois, Minnesota, New York, Texas, Iowa, and the Mayor of Washington DC and so on and so forth. So, if people keep voting the person, he or she can serve as Governor for even 10 terms if they want. But there are States where you can only serve two terms at a time. Even if you want to contest again after some years, you have to step down first. So, when it comes to Governors’ pensions in America, just as the salaries are different, the pensions are also different. And the State of California for example, a former governor gets paid about $5,000 for every year that he served in office. And the maximum serve limit in California is two terms, that is eight years. That means a governor can only get up to $40,000 per a year as his pension in California. That’s about N15million. Whereas, Zamfara State former governor was collecting N10million EVERY MONTH.
According to lawmakers in Zamfara State, the pension of all their former governor is costing them more than N700million every year. Now, they are happy they can actually use that money to develop Zamfara State and help its economy. And one wonders how have they been doing it? Another good news is, Kwara State, has decided to follow suit. In Kwara State, a former governor is entitled to pension for life, which is an equivalent of the annual basic salary of the incumbent, so whoever comes in after him or her, they get paid the same salary as the sitting governor. On top of that, they get furnished five-bedroom duplex, 300% of their basic salary for furniture allowance, which is replaceable every four years. Free medical treatment for the Governor and Deputy Governor and their immediate families, even if they have to go abroad. Car maintenance fee, driver’s house maintenance fee and 2 cars for the Governor, in addition to one escort vehicle. To be replaced every three years. Is this not ridiculous! The Kwara State pension law also provides former Governors and Deputy Governors domestic staff, including cooks, stewards, gardeners, and two other domestic staffs; and all this people are pensionable. So, not only is the State paying pension to the Governor and the Deputy Governor, the State will also be paying pension to these domestic workers whenever they retire. Let that sink in for a minute. Also, a former Governor of Kwara State is entitled to two SSS details and one female officer. In addition to Eight (8) policemen. While the Deputy Governor is also entitled to one SSS detail in addition to two (2) policemen. No wonder Kwara State is where it has been this whole time.
What you need to also keep in mind is that in Nigeria, so many of our former Governors are doing what we call: DOUBLE DIPPING. They are DOUBLE DIPPING in several places. While they are collecting pensions, which is basically their former salaries and all kinds of benefits, they are now either lawmakers collecting full salary and allowances of a lawmaker, at the same time that they are collecting their pensions. Or they are now Ministers, collecting salaries of Ministers while still collecting their pensions and other benefits as former governors. Either way, many of them are collecting salaries and pensions at the same time. Just imagine the former Governor of Kwara State, Bukola Saraki for example, collecting all these benefits that I just mentioned, while serving as the Senate President then. So, I am really happy that Kwara State Governor has decided to scrap this pension law. But we are still waiting to see if the lawmakers in Kwara State will pass this amendment. It is not enough to say you want to do; you really have to actually see it through. I was also really happy when I saw that the Governor of Lagos State, Sanwo-Olu has promised to do the same thing in Lagos. And just like Kwara State, we are waiting to see if the lawmakers in Lagos will actually follow through. In Lagos State, a former Governor and his Deputy get paid the basic salary of whoever comes in after them, which is about N7.7million per month. And then one residential house. If a Governor serves Two terms, he gets another residential house in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. And then, they get six new cars every three years. How does that even make sense - six cars every three years?
They get free health care for themselves and their family members. This includes if they go abroad for treatment. It doesn’t matter which country they are going to, they pay cash with tax payers’ money. They also get furniture allowance, which is 30% of their annual basic salary, which is about N23.3million. House maintenance allowance which is 10% of their basic salaries at N778,000. They also get utility allowance, which is 20% of basic salary, so that it is N1.5million. They get car maintenance allowance at 30% of their annual salary, that is N2.3million. Entertainment allowance (remember this is former governors), and that is 10% of basic salary at N738,000. They get Personal Assistants, who will earn 25% whatever the Governor’s annual basic salary is. That is N1.9million. And then they get 8 policemen. Two DSS details attached to the Governor for the rest of his life.
Tell me, how is Nigeria supposed to develop with these politicians robbing us point blank. I think that is more than enough for you to digest in one day, because the reality is, this just shows you how our politicians are milking the country dry. These same governors will still owe salaries of teachers and doctors. We have not even started on our lawmakers, that’s for another day. Nigerian Governors and former Governors get paid, not just more than what American and former Governors of America are paid, but they also get paid more than what American Presidents and former American Presidents get paid. Do you know that American President earns $400,000 in a year? That’s about N152million. I mean, just the security votes alone of some of the Governors that we have in Nigeria, is more than that every month. By the time you now know they get paid more than American Presidents. In America, former President also gets a pension of $219,200 every year, and they must pay taxes on that pension.
Similar to this subject issue, recent reports revealed that Delta and Edo State Governments have spent over a whopping N842m on pensions and benefits for just two convicted former governors in the last 12 years. The two former governors, James Ibori of Delta State and Lucky Igbinedion of Edo State, were convicted for embezzling public funds between 1999 and 2007. What baffled me more was the fact that these heartless and wicked politicians: Ibori and Igbinedion, haven stolen their States public funds to a bleeding point, had shortly before the end of their tenure signed laws that would guarantee LIFE PENSIONS and SEVERAL BENEFITS for them and their Successors. As for the former Delta State Governor, Ibori, who "served" between 1999 and 2007, he signed into law the Delta State Governor and Deputy Governor Pension Rights and Other Benefits Law 2005, which was later amended in 2009. That of Edo State is also similar to this.
It is indeed painful that, when Delta State Government have not been able to pay the State pensioners, it still had the audacity to spend public money on those who had stolen/looted Delta State treasury dry. What a shame! How can a government be 'comfortable' in consistently paying the outrageous life pension of a former Governor, who had admitted of being guilty in a UK Crown Court of stealing the State's public? Yet, in the midst of this, that same State Government keeps looking for excuses every now and then, of not being able to pay the pensions of its civil service workers, some of whom have served the State for 35 years. What should we call this? Man's inhumanity against his fellow man or what?
We can only pray that the Delta State House of Assembly would one day 'miraculously' consider towing the same path like its Zamfara and Kwara State counterparts. It is also imperative for those, including the society's elites who still hail and support the said ex-convict like Ibori, in the name of "he is one of our own", they should also realize that it is their children's future and that of the future generations of our society that these people are squandering and wasting away just to satisfy their insatiable greed. If anything, they should be stoned and shamed in public for this evil. We simply cannot continue to fold our hands, keep quiet and allow this anomaly to remain. It is absolute madness!
For real, Nigerians need to wake up and realize that, what we have is mostly criminals in office. Even after they live, they go to another office to still rob us. So, my question to you is; Do you know how much your governor and your former governors are getting in your State? Do you know all the allowances they are getting? Am sure if you do, you would really get angry. The truth is, until Nigeria cuts its outrageous cost of Governance across all levels of Government, we would never achieve the desired development.
Zik Gbemre.
December 12, 2020
We Mobilize Others To Fight For Individual Causes As If Those Were Our Causes