The parliamentary arm of the federal government has
seemingly remained a drainpipe that impedes economic growth in the
country since the ongoing democratic system commenced in 1999.
Comparatively, a Nigerian senator or member of the House of the
Representatives earns several times more than their counterparts
across the world. Still, corruption sways in the chambers.
In fact, during the previous administrations, ‘Ghana-must-go’
bags with megabucks were practically turned into lobbying and
legislative tools for screenings, confirmation of appointments and
passage of budgets. As a result, reckless, profit-motivated and
episodic impeachment motions became the order of the days on any
president in power particularly during Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s
administration which all ended in pecuniary deals. Later, it became
a routine in the successive governments until the present
administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. In effect, do-or-die
politics ruled the polity as belonging to the parliament became the
fastest money-making venture.
Notwithstanding the gross aberrations, the lawmakers
advantageously allocated outrageous allowances to themselves. The
recently exposed monthly-running costs of a whopping sum of
N13.5million to each senator which if allocated to visible
developmental projects across all the constituencies will no doubt,
concurrently boost development across the nation, remains a
nightmare. It is indeed heartless, iniquitous and greed that as
much as the amount is self-allocated and collected monthly by each
of the senators separately from consolidated salaries on
inconsequentialities. Some lawmakers once in a while will fix a
quasi-amenity but file up fictitious copious receipts without
substantiation. Meanwhile, the people in their constituencies
remain in misery, joblessness and poverty. Then, additional
N200million for constituency projects is allotted annually, yet the
polity keeps appearing pitiable and abandoned. Perhaps, it should
be appropriately renamed paper-projects since they are nonexistent
anywhere. Irrefutably, the actions fell below the bar of
civility.
This believably, accounts for the unbending attempts to
intimidate the chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission, Ibrahim Magu out of office to pave way for a
companionable new helmsman. The fundamental question for the
lawmakers is; how could the Public Procurement Act they passed into
law specify how projects should be bid and executed but they
indiscriminately allocated public funds to themselves albeit the
council is yet to be constituted? Or is the country comparable to
George Orwell’s Animal Farm where some animals are more equal than
others? For example, Section 16(17) of the Public Procurement Act
2014 provides that “a contract shall be awarded to the lowest
evaluated responsive bid from the bidders substantially responsive
to the bid solicitation”. By the way, how could the legislature
prepare and pass its budget and also clothe itself with powers to
override the president? Indeed, this is a blinder.
The recent episodes are glaringly satirical. Lawmakers
fantastically misappropriate public funds that could aid to improve
the economy but always shed crocodile tears over unemployment ratio
in the society. Sensitively, if the plights of the youths truly
move them as portrayed on the controversial Peace Corps bill, the
appropriate action should be to expand the budgetary allocation
specifically as employment interventionist policy which will enable
the executive expand its workforce including the existing security
agencies thereby absorb more youths into their respective
personnel. Unfortunately, legislature’s budgets alone keep
going up and up with outrageous masked allowances. Over the years,
politicians often play on the sensibilities of the vulnerable
citizens especially the youths during election periods.
Interestingly, the red chamber is presently manned by unique
identities; commonsense advocate, great anti-corruption crusader,
voice of the new generation, defender of the down-trodden, economic
empowerment strategist and many other titles who relentlessly
criticize the executive every now and then. Yet, they
collaboratively overlooked, concealed and promoted for several
years the fraudulent running costs and constituency projects
sufficient to improve the society in few years if prudently
expended.
Presently, the 2018 Appropriation bill presented to the National
Assembly early enough, precisely on November 7, 2017 by the
President to stimulate the economy that was critically hit by
recession, sadly still hops up and down at the end of first
quarter. Incontestably, the lawmakers work for their personal
interests. The constituency projects astutely envisioned has
constituted conduits to the treasury. The bicameral legislature
itself is the grand drainpipe. As a developing democracy, Nigeria
shouldn’t have clichéd the developed system verbatim but modify
progressively.
It therefore suggests that the anti-graft agency has a lot of
works to do. No amount of propaganda should dampen the spirits from
moving into actions towards recovering misappropriated public
funds, however unselectively. It is absolutely ridiculous, height
of aberration and totally unacceptable to enthrone mediocrity and
expect developments. From 1999 the running costs and constituency
projects came into existence, it is rare to find any such projects
anywhere except few that managed to complete a borehole in one
community or repaint a community-market with giant sign-posts. It
is fittingly inhumanity to man that lawmakers freely loot public
funds while the masses they use satisfactorily during elections are
drying up in hunger and hardship. Egocentricity has clearly
defeated the objects of constituency projects solicitously aimed at
spreading rapid developments to the grassroots through the
representatives. Probably, this is where Charley Boy’s
“OurMumuDonDo” initiative will appropriately and effectually make
sense than the defunct ‘resume or resign’ crusade. Until the
legislative arm is reformed, things may hardly fall in shapes.
Umegboro, public affairs analyst wrote from Abuja via:
umegborocarl@gmail.com (07057101974 SMS
only)
The parliamentary arm of the federal government has
seemingly remained a drainpipe that impedes economic growth in the
country since the ongoing democratic system commenced in 1999.
Comparatively, a Nigerian senator or member of the House of the
Representatives earns several times more than their counterparts
across the world. Still, corruption sways in the chambers.
In fact, during the previous administrations, ‘Ghana-must-go’
bags with megabucks were practically turned into lobbying and
legislative tools for screenings, confirmation of appointments and
passage of budgets. As a result, reckless, profit-motivated and
episodic impeachment motions became the order of the days on any
president in power particularly during Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s
administration which all ended in pecuniary deals. Later, it became
a routine in the successive governments until the present
administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. In effect, do-or-die
politics ruled the polity as belonging to the parliament became the
fastest money-making venture.
Notwithstanding the gross aberrations, the lawmakers
advantageously allocated outrageous allowances to themselves. The
recently exposed monthly-running costs of a whopping sum of
N13.5million to each senator which if allocated to visible
developmental projects across all the constituencies will no doubt,
concurrently boost development across the nation, remains a
nightmare. It is indeed heartless, iniquitous and greed that as
much as the amount is self-allocated and collected monthly by each
of the senators separately from consolidated salaries on
inconsequentialities. Some lawmakers once in a while will fix a
quasi-amenity but file up fictitious copious receipts without
substantiation. Meanwhile, the people in their constituencies
remain in misery, joblessness and poverty. Then, additional
N200million for constituency projects is allotted annually, yet the
polity keeps appearing pitiable and abandoned. Perhaps, it should
be appropriately renamed paper-projects since they are nonexistent
anywhere. Irrefutably, the actions fell below the bar of
civility.
This believably, accounts for the unbending attempts to
intimidate the chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission, Ibrahim Magu out of office to pave way for a
companionable new helmsman. The fundamental question for the
lawmakers is; how could the Public Procurement Act they passed into
law specify how projects should be bid and executed but they
indiscriminately allocated public funds to themselves albeit the
council is yet to be constituted? Or is the country comparable to
George Orwell’s Animal Farm where some animals are more equal than
others? For example, Section 16(17) of the Public Procurement Act
2014 provides that “a contract shall be awarded to the lowest
evaluated responsive bid from the bidders substantially responsive
to the bid solicitation”. By the way, how could the legislature
prepare and pass its budget and also clothe itself with powers to
override the president? Indeed, this is a blinder.
The recent episodes are glaringly satirical. Lawmakers
fantastically misappropriate public funds that could aid to improve
the economy but always shed crocodile tears over unemployment ratio
in the society. Sensitively, if the plights of the youths truly
move them as portrayed on the controversial Peace Corps bill, the
appropriate action should be to expand the budgetary allocation
specifically as employment interventionist policy which will enable
the executive expand its workforce including the existing security
agencies thereby absorb more youths into their respective
personnel. Unfortunately, legislature’s budgets alone keep
going up and up with outrageous masked allowances. Over the years,
politicians often play on the sensibilities of the vulnerable
citizens especially the youths during election periods.
Interestingly, the red chamber is presently manned by unique
identities; commonsense advocate, great anti-corruption crusader,
voice of the new generation, defender of the down-trodden, economic
empowerment strategist and many other titles who relentlessly
criticize the executive every now and then. Yet, they
collaboratively overlooked, concealed and promoted for several
years the fraudulent running costs and constituency projects
sufficient to improve the society in few years if prudently
expended.
Presently, the 2018 Appropriation bill presented to the National
Assembly early enough, precisely on November 7, 2017 by the
President to stimulate the economy that was critically hit by
recession, sadly still hops up and down at the end of first
quarter. Incontestably, the lawmakers work for their personal
interests. The constituency projects astutely envisioned has
constituted conduits to the treasury. The bicameral legislature
itself is the grand drainpipe. As a developing democracy, Nigeria
shouldn’t have clichéd the developed system verbatim but modify
progressively.
It therefore suggests that the anti-graft agency has a lot of
works to do. No amount of propaganda should dampen the spirits from
moving into actions towards recovering misappropriated public
funds, however unselectively. It is absolutely ridiculous, height
of aberration and totally unacceptable to enthrone mediocrity and
expect developments. From 1999 the running costs and constituency
projects came into existence, it is rare to find any such projects
anywhere except few that managed to complete a borehole in one
community or repaint a community-market with giant sign-posts. It
is fittingly inhumanity to man that lawmakers freely loot public
funds while the masses they use satisfactorily during elections are
drying up in hunger and hardship. Egocentricity has clearly
defeated the objects of constituency projects solicitously aimed at
spreading rapid developments to the grassroots through the
representatives. Probably, this is where Charley Boy’s
“OurMumuDonDo” initiative will appropriately and effectually make
sense than the defunct ‘resume or resign’ crusade. Until the
legislative arm is reformed, things may hardly fall in shapes.
Umegboro, public affairs analyst wrote from Abuja via:
umegborocarl@gmail.com (07057101974 SMS
only)
Read more https://nairalaw.com/n13-5m-senators-and-the-monthly-running-costs-by-carl-umegboro/