The Nigerian Senate has refuted allegations by former President Olusegun Obasanjo that legislators were fixing their own salaries and receiving special fiscal packages from The Presidency.
Obasanjo, Nigerian President from 1999 to 2007, raised the matter while receiving members of the House of Representatives who paid him a visit.
In a video of the visit, Obasanjo queried the propriety and decency of legislators fixing humongous allowances for themselves, a job he said was that of the Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Allocation Commission (RMAFC).
However, a statement released by Senate Spokesman, Yemi Adaramodu (APC, Ekiti South), the Senate described the allegations as an attempt to “crucify the Legislature by the centurions of political hypocrisy.”
Additionally, Adaramodu clarified that the constituency projects often linked to the Legislature were merely suggested and nominated by Senators, following practices common in other democracies worldwide.
The Senate stressed that it only received salary allocated to it by the revenue commission, in strict accordance with constitutional provisions.
It challenged anyone with credible evidence to present contrary facts, describing any suggestion that the National Assembly fixes its own salaries as “uncharitable and satanic.”
The Senate further explained: “The Executive arm of government, through its various Ministries and agencies, is responsible for awarding contracts for the constituency projects. The funds allocated for these projects, vary depending on the number of constituencies in each state and the intention is to ensure that every region of Nigeria benefits from federal resources”.
Adaramodu assured the public that the 10th Assembly remained a “responsible and responsive chamber.”
