Plans to Increase Salaries of Tinubu, Politicians by Revenue Commission Provocative, Insensitive, Says Political Science Association
The Nigerian Political Science Association has vehemently criticized the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission’s decision to augment the salaries of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and other public officials, deeming it both provocative and insensitive.
In a statement by its President, Prof. Hassan Saliu, the association highlights the plight of the majority of Nigerian workers, who are struggling to survive on the paltry minimum wage of N70,000 with many uncertain about their next meal.
The NPSA suggests that a more judicious course of action would be to extend the incremental salary increase already sanctioned for judges to other professional sectors, such as members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
It pointedly remarks on the meager salaries of senior professors in public universities, who earn less than six hundred thousand naira monthly after deductions, underscoring the minimal value placed on education and learning in Nigeria.
“The basic salary of 1.5 million naira per month for one of the highest-paid public officials in the country might appear modest, yet the state’s financial obligations to sustain such a position transcend mere salary.
Given these considerations, the proposal to elevate the salaries of public office holders is ill-conceived and would exacerbate existing challenges,” NPSA declared.
The association cautioned that the country’s fragile economic situation would deteriorate further should the substantial salary increases proposed by RMAFC be approved this year or next.
“The proportion of recurrent expenditure will swell, significantly encroaching upon the capital component of the national budget.
Furthermore, as more loans are sought from international entities, the share of debt servicing will also escalate, both of which will undermine the developmental aspirations of the citizenry.”
NPSA, asserting that more pressing issues demand attention in Nigeria and that salary reviews for public officials cannot be deemed a priority, urged the suspension of the proposal for the benefit of all Nigerians.
“Instead, a concerted effort is necessary to reconcile the somewhat contradictory statistics about Nigeria from its economic partners with the stark realities faced by ordinary Nigerians, which are neither promising nor encouraging.
Democracy should empower the majority, if not all, rather than a privileged few who are already extracting substantial resources from the commonwealth through various means, leaving the majority teetering on the brink of survival.
Moreover, given the alarmingly low productivity levels in the nation, the RMAFC’s proposed salary review is ill-timed and may further deteriorate the country’s already troubling productivity levels,” it added.
