By Ahmed Ahmed
The Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has said that increasing salaries of public officials and political office holders would help to reduce or prevent corruption in the country.
Alhaji Kabiru Usman, Federal Commissioner of the Commission in Charge of Gombe State, stated this in an interview with journalists shortly after a courtesy visit to Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State on Thursday in Bauchi.
He said that increasing their salaries would help to reduce or prevent corruption, noting that well-paid public officeholders would not siphon government resources.
“It has reviewed the salary structure of political office holders in the country and will soon start its implementation.
According to him, increasing the salaries of political office holders in the country is necessary given the prevailing economic challenges in the country.
He said that the Commission has been empowered by law to determine the salaries of political office holders and judicial workers in the country hence, increasing their salaries would aid them in carrying out their assigned responsibilities.
Usman, however, said that their salaries have been reviewed but they are yet to still “studying the situation for now.”
When he was asked if the RMAFC would increase the salaries of political office holders since the Nigeria Labour Congress is seeking an increase of salaries for workers, he said: “You see, political office holders are human beings, they are also public workers and they go to the same markets with everyone.
“The Commission, under paragraph 32b is empowered to determine the salaries of political office holders and judicial workers in the country. So, we have undertaken work on it, we have revised it but we are looking at the situation for now. What we are doing is we are not doing it to allow somebody to have a very fat salary, whatever we are paying, there are certain principles that we look upon before we increase that salary.
“Apart from the cost of living index, initially, the former salary that we had when a bag of rice was sold, maybe N200 or N300 now the same bag of rice is over N50,000, so you see how things have changed. The cost of utilities, gas, electricity, and telephone, are going astronomically high; so because of that, you have to review.
“If you say you’ll just pay a Governor N5,000 for the cost of telephone, how many hours does the governor need to talk in a day? If you say that I am a Minister and that you are giving me only a bag of rice in my house, is that adequate? Will it cater to my people? So, we are also looking at the responsibilities attached to that office.
“When you have a commissioner who is your classmate, your friend, your neighbor, you all go to him when you have a problem. So, assuming his salary is also N30,000 like your own, would you go to him?”
The Federal Commissioner justified the move to increase the salaries of the political office holders pointing out that it would help in addressing the menace of corruption.
“In all honesty, we are doing that with all sense of responsibility. We don’t want corruption.
“So, if somebody is managing millions and you say his salary is only N50,000, are you sure he’s not going to temper with what is under his care? So, these are some of the principles we are using,” he stated.
Also speaking on the salary increase for political office holders, Governor Bala Mohammed, said that RMAFC has already come up with a salary structure, “because what is good for the goose is good for the gander.”
“Our political party holders too are entitled to get a salary increase too and they have done it, it is being ratified.
“I am a labor-friendly governor and I wouldn’t mind if these salaries are increased because Bauchi is one state that is paying the minimum wage with consequential adjustment, because as a civil servant who grew through the system of public service, I knew where the shoe pinch,” he added.