Regina Otokpa 
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has strongly criticised the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) over its plan to embark on a comprehensive upward review of the remuneration packages of political office holders across the country.
NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, in a statement issued Sunday in Abuja, described RMAFC’s justifications for the planned review as “insensitive, inequitable, unjust, and insulting to the intelligence of Nigerians and workers.”
He urged the Commission to suspend the proposed review “before it triggers a tsunami,” demanding that the current earnings of all political office holders, as well as the benchmark for the proposed increment, be made public.
Ajaero warned that increasing political office holders’ pay at this time would only fuel desperation among politicians to win elections at all costs, widen inequality between civil servants and politicians, and exacerbate poverty among Nigerians, most of whom have been classified as multi-dimensionally poor.
He said:
“We have listened with growing apprehension to the justification for this ill-advised adventure by the Chairman of RMAFC, Mr. Mohammed Usman, but we find it appropriate to warn that making public office a sanctuary for wealth-making instead of service and sacrifice will raise desperation for political positions, with dire consequences, including self-extinction.
“Mr. Usman’s explanations, largely puerile, insult our collective intelligence as they say nothing of the humongous advantages tied to these offices elegantly couched as perquisites, ways, and means, while the poor live only on hopes and dreams.”
The labour leader decried the timing of the proposal, noting that most public subsectors are currently under promotion and salary freezes, and the minimum wage remains pegged at N70,000, despite rising costs of living and tariff hikes.
He recalled that the last wage review for civil servants amounted to less than 50 percent, whereas political office holders’ pay was reviewed upward by over 800 percent.
Ajaero also criticised the uniformity of political office holders’ salaries across states, unlike civil servants who are subjected to varying pay structures based on state resources:
“This explains why a councillor in Yobe State earns the same salary as a councillor in Rivers State.”
While acknowledging the importance of adequate remuneration for all public officers, the NLC insisted it must be fair and equitable:
“One of the most heinous crimes against humanity is the institution and promotion of apartheid in any human setting, no matter how subtle.”
