Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has said chided the Federal Government over the increase in the salaries of elected politicians, including the President, vice president, governors, lawmakers, as well as judicial and public office holders, was wrong.
According to recent media reports, President Bola Tinubu had approved a 114% increase suggested by the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) for the affected officers.
In a series of tweets on his official Twitter handle on Thursday, Obi said that it was “not the appropriate time for such salary increment if it is at all necessary.”
According to him, the country was at “a time when an average Nigerian is struggling with many harsh economic realities, and with over 130 million Nigerians now living in poverty. This is a moment when recent reform measures by the government have increased living costs astronomically.”
The tweet further disclosed that “One would expect the leaders and public officeholders to focus on cutting the cost of governance, alleviating the sufferings of Nigerians. This moment calls for creative ways of pulling the majority out of poverty.
“In the immortal words of Shakespeare’s Julius Ceaser, “What touches us ourselves shall be last served.” The leaders, therefore, should prioritize what affects the masses and those on the lower strata of the society over themselves.
“The sacrifice, at this time in our nation, should be borne by the leaders. The increment should be reversed immediately, and the savings should be devoted to fixing education, healthcare and poverty alleviation, especially in the remote rural areas.”
Similarly, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has threatened to sue the President Bola Tinubu’s administration over the matter.
SERAP announced this in a tweet where it said: “We’re suing the Tinubu administration over its outrageous and illegal 114 per cent increase in the salaries of the President, vice president, state governors and lawmakers, while over 133 million Nigerians live in extreme poverty.”
Following the backlash trailing the reports of salary increase, the RMAFC came out to say President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has not approved the increment of salaries of political office-holders, judicial and public office holders by 114%.
