For Segun Gbedegesin
Re: 10 posers for NASS. Good point. Keep it up sir. Anonymous
I think Nigerian should ask our members these questions, let them give us the answers. We need change. Anonymous
’10 posers for NASS’ God bless you. We need them on part time basis. Anonymous
“10 posers for NASS” The long and short of the story is that: Only Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Commission should fix, regulate, review, remuneration of all the public office holders from the highest office of the President to the lowest office of the cleaner. Senators should never be allowed to fix remuneration for themselves or any other office. In fact, the senators’ offices should be expunged from the political system. House of Representatives to Executive is just adequate to run good governance in the system. Two (2) layers of governance. It will not only cut down cost but also remove bottle necks in the system. From Elder Gbadegesin Adeoye.
Sir, your ‘10 posers for NASS’ in The Nation was just like a mirror searching the minds of our legislators. The leadership should forward answers to the posers. May God bless you. Anonymous
Dear Sir, your ’10 posers for NASS’ of Friday, June 19, 2015 refers. As long as reactionaries and ultraconservative elements are at the helm and dictating the pace in the National Assembly, I won’t be surprised if all of the posers are treated with scorn and spitefulness. I have started to be pessimistic since June 9. I pray that I’m disappointed over my view. From Olu Ajayi, Abeokuta.
10 posers for NASS in your column made interesting reading. It is the best comment on change since. I pray you live long. Amen. From Alhaji A Abubakar
I just read your write-up now on the back page of The nation. May God Almighty continue to bless and use you for His glory and our Nation. From Noah O.A, Lagos.
Well done sir with your detailed thought provoking posers raised. I recommend a maximum of usa $150,000/per annum total pay for any nass member as opposed to $2,18m current pay. It has been too outrageous, that’s why the cover-up eversince. Thanks. From Engr Jm Ajuwon (JP)
We need a law that will not allow ex-political office holders like Senator David Mark to contest again. Anonymous
Mr Gbadegesin, you are carrying “change” too far. ‘Change’ is for other people. It can never include modifying the salaries and allowances of NASS members. We need wardrobe allowance. Appearance shows who you are. We are Senators and Reps of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. We need to dress well. We have to recoup our investments. Do you know some of us sold choice properties in Maitama and Asokoro (Abuja), in Ikoyi, Banana Island and Lekki Phase I, in Lagos to fund our elections? Please, put your searchlight for ‘change’ elsewhere. Nigerians are happy with their legislators. You journalists should stop putting your nose in our pot of pepper soup! Anonymous
The first step taken by our legislators does not portend good tidings. Any lawmaker that defies his party and align with conservative opposition cannot implement in good faith most of the points raised in your article. The evil alliance was to perpetuate the oppressive privileges. Sanity of the body depends on the sanity of the head. President Buhari on the long run may have to depend on the public to implement his programme through mass action backed by the civil society. From Tunde Bankole.
Re-10 posers for NASS. You did a very good job on your write-up. You hit them below the belt, in truth if they’ll listen. However, you are expected Sir to do a – 10 poser request for both the Executive (Federal Government and states) as well as the Judiciary ( lower, high and the supreme court). We can then fully assess the government in the next four years. Again, you are appreciated in the above write-up for your love for the masses and the downtrodden. From Lanre Oseni.
Thank you for your wonderful piece, but I want to say that National Assembly is not an agent of change, rather it is a watch dog of change, and that change should come from the presidency as a policy, and if the presidency thinks that National assembly’s cut in their remuneration is part of the Change he promised Nigerians then. Let the President write letter to the National Assembly requesting that their remunerations be cut, then Nigerians will know that really he who sends a child to carry a tortoise will give him water to wash his hands. From Nnanna, Enugu
Sir, you’ve done very well in your today’s write-up in The Nation newspaper. More grease to your elbow. From Yakub Mustapha Ayinde
President Buhari’s government stand discredited for accepting to work with Saraki and Dogara against the interest of the party and majority of Nigerians. Can we now say that Buhari would have accepted the PDP presidential candidacy if he was offered ? Those who doubted the sincerity of APC’s change slogan had been proven right. Mr President, is this the change we voted for? Certainly not. From Alhaji Adeboye Lawal.
Thanks for the piece 1O posers for NASS if I may ask how long have you been sermonising. Sir it’s the foundation that is faulty. No amount of sermon will correct it. However, for the NASS, those God want to kill, he first made deaf. They have invested to massively therefore they just have to recoup the capital cum interest and adjust for inflation and for unborn generation. Anonymous
For Olatunji Dare
You appeared to be blowing hot and cold in your “Re-thinking Nigerian political parties” piece of June 13. One major drawback to the country’s political system to date, is the much-talked “a winner takes all” mentality still in operation here. Buhari’s refusal to impose the Senate president preferred by the ruling APC leadership on us like others before him did, is a welcome development and not a sign of weakness on his part. Godfatherism just has to be done away with in our political system for good. How legitimate the process by which Saraki/others emerged, and how qualified are they for the posts, should be considered more important than the party or region of their origin. Party decentralisation however seemingly attractive in our polity this time, shouldn’t take precedence over leadership by merit. Nigerians voted for APC in the interest of Nigerians, and not for APC and its leadership to toss us up and down the way they like. From Emmanuel Egwu,
Of a truth, no constitution, however flawless or sacrosanct, can work in the country if the operators remain corrupt and would always want to govern according to the dictates of their temper, instead of leading by the rule of law. Conversely, an imperfect constitution such as ours could easily produce the best people-oriented government and for the advancement of the country, if the managers of the existing order would behave differently and lead by the rule of law. But this hasn’t been the case with us here. Our leaders, it’s common knowledge, would rather want to capitalise on the defects in the constitution to commit all manner of impunity against the people, besides the debilitating structural imbalances in the country, which all added, make the constitution amendments quite imperative. There are obviously so many inadequacies in the constitution as it stands today, that can’t be effectively dealt with without effecting the needed amendments first. Anonymous
Democracy day observed on May 29 as an alternative to June 12 because June 12 gave birth to democracy few Nigerians are enjoying now. Senator Saraki emerged as Senate president in a controversial manner is very unfortunate and sad despite allegation of mismanagement of funds level led against him. It is unacceptable and a slap in the face of other senators. Anti-graft agencies are not doing enough to jail some politicians who empty the treasury. From Chika Nnorom.
For Tunji Adegboyega
Re: Nigeria’s own ‘Rotten Parliament’? Did it take the Kaduna and Kano executives a month to slash their pay by 50 percent when they are ready to serve? No. With pays like the national, state assemblies and many state executives’ (except Kaduna and Kano) states), some governors would take jamboree to Mr President for ‘bail-out’. From which purse? From Lanre Oseni.
Tunji, well done for your messages. Thank God we saw our president reading The Nation, so he too hears. Please all these Anambra emergency millionaire politicians are still patrolling with armed escorts. Check where the Ubahs, the Offors are going in the villages you would think it is Buhari that is passing. From Innocent, Nnewi.
It is change deferred. The new leadership of the National Assembly has shown it is not different from the PDP. Anonymous.
Tunji, should our legislators be clothed by us at all? If we get houses for them, they should furnish the houses themselves. Above all, they should become part time. From Pastor Remi.
There is no explanation from the leadership of the National Assembly that Nigerians expect other than that the jumbo pay be cut in the interest of majority of Nigerians who are in abject poverty. At the country’s age, Nigerians should not be living from hand to mouth; the country should not be without infrastructural development. It is uncalled-for that our legislators should be collecting such jumbo pay. Nigerians should come out to condemn this. From Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia, Abia State.
I was a member of the then Ondo State House of Assembly in the Second Republic. My monthly salary and allowances inclusive was under N2,000. No oversight function; no constituency projects. Ajasin showed good example. The present salaries and allowances of all legislators in Nigeria should be reduced by 75 percent and there should be no constituency project and oversight functions. Hon Bode Thomas Babatola, Efon Local Government, Efon Alaaye, Ekiti State.
In Nigeria today, one of the most guarded secrets is the total emoluments of our legislators. They disagree along party lines, but they never disagree to the extent that any of them would spill the beans on their total take home pay. Just last week, they almost brought the roof down on the whole nation in their quest for the leadership of the National Assembly. This week they are all united and speaking with one voice when it came to raping the nation’s treasury and robbing the common man. From Simon Oladapo, Ogbomoso.
It is very unfortunate that those that our legislators are the same people causing abnormalities in the country over their personal aggrandizement. How on earth can a civil servant who has not received his or her N18,000 salary per month be happy when a law maker is taking over half a million naira for wardrobe allowance? Is this sweet melody to the ears? It is very painful that our leaders are still living in the past, contrary to the change they all clamoured for. If by now the leadership of the National Assembly is still helpless, I think serious prayer is needed. From Hamza Ozi Momoh, Apapa, Lagos.
For Ambassador Fafowora
I appreciate your write-up, “Reducing the cost of governance”. Our problem is our legislators in the green and red chambers. I pray that Buhari would achieve the change that all Nigerians require. He should cut his own pay and erase all other allowances, cars, aides, ministers, etc. Workers who are 60 years and above should retire in all the ministries, corporations, the judiciary, etc. Then, cut down the number of workers in all the establishments; pay them up to start jobs on their own. Look at Osun, workers in the civil service only consume over 70 percent of the federal allocation to the state. Pity Ogbeni Aregbesola dearly! Let the old hands go; then employ new hands , create farm settlements and give loans to new graduates to start own jobs. Our legislators should not block Buhari. Nigerians are watching them. I wish Nigerians the best of luck. Anonymous.
It is necessary for President Buhari to cut the pay of political appointees; he should also reduce the number of ministries to save cost for development. What we need now is developmental infrastructure and not ’stomach infrastructure’. From Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia, Abia State.
Sir, your analysis is analytical and to the point. Our problem is deep-rooted and part of it abundantly provided in the very edition of The Nation in which your brilliant article was published. Sir, turn your mind to pages 2, 3 and 6, and see mindboggling scandals. A nation that allows such scandals go unpunished cannot record meaningful progress. For instance, the RMAFC and the Speaker of the House of Representatives did not see anything wrong in billions of naira allocation to the lawmakers when most of the states owe months of unpaid salaries. Buhari cannot solve these problems; we are definitely heading towards a class revolution. It can only be delayed for some time as this ruling class is incapable of reforming itself. From Tunde Bankole.
“Reducing the cost of governance in Nigeria” is a very good piece. But to do that will involve a silent revolution of all the citizens in case the National Assembly refuses to reduce its outrageous allowances and forget wardrobe allowance and constituency projects, etc. Thank you. From Wale Adeoye.
Thanks sincerely for your article. Your concern for the less privileged, especially public service salary earners is worthy of note. It is however expected, sir, that people of your caliber will continue to mount pressure on the new government to make matters affecting the common people of utmost interest. From Gboyega Roberts, Akure, Ondo State.
Well done for your well researched suggestions/advice. God bless you. Anonymous.
God bless you for this piece. To deal with reality, a good citizen needs to be worried about the situation of our state. Equally, Nigeria’s leaders need a rethink on this change of attitude expected from them, by reducing their outrageous and expensive allowances and others. They should perform their functions with a high sense of honour and exhibit the highest level of professional excellence in all their official engagements without being extravagant. The functions of law makers should be on part time as was done in the past. Ninety-five percent of the people who were born the same way as our leaders are wallowing in poverty simply because they are not among the ruling class. Mr President should deal with this matter urgently. From Amidu Saheed, Ifo, Ogun State.