A Nigerian-born United States legislator representing Albany County in the 7th District of New York, Beroro Efekoro, has described the salaries and allowances of members of the National Assembly as outrageous.
Beroro stated this in a statement in New York on Thursday, while reacting to the controversy surrounding the salaries and allowances payable to members of the National Assembly of Nigeria.
The claim that members of the National Assembly fixed their salaries reportedly surfaced during a visit by some members of the House of Representatives to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, sparking widespread public concern.
The Senate, on Sunday, refuted the claim that National Assembly members fixed their own salaries and go home with huge pay.
However, according to a statement by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, each Senator collects a monthly salary and allowances of the sum of N1.063m.
In response, the US lawmaker stated that the explanation given by the Commission is just for the sake of formality.
He said, “The one who made the allegations was a former senator and knows how much he was receiving. Even the commission, the person who made the press statement, knows that the breakdown you have provided is what is on paper for the sake of formality.
“The Nigerian government and politicians continue to push Nigerians to the wall but forget that Nigerians never forget. Nigerians only let things slide for as long as we can bear.”
The lawmaker urged Nigerians to support the administration of President Bola Tinubu in order to address the challenges facing the country.
Efekoro also warned the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, to stop intimidating those senators who wish to hold the president accountable to the citizens of Nigeria.
He added, “I still have faith in the administration of President Bola Tinubu, but that the National Assembly should not be a rubber stamp to the President.
“I plead with my fellow Nigerians to give the Tinubu administration more time to take the economy out of the mess created by the Buhari administration. On the other hand, Tinubu’s administration needs to tell Nigerians how much has been saved by the Nigerian government through subsidy removal and how that money has been utilized.
“The administration needs to state their plan for the economy and carry Nigerians along with whatever their intentions are to avert a soon-to-come revolution.”
