The resolve of the National Assembly to proceed with the acquisition of luxury Sport Utility Vehicles for its members, despite public outcry, is condemnable and highly insensitive to the poor economic plight of most Nigerians....
At a time when the nation is substantially run on borrowed funds and 130 million Nigerians are living in multidimensional poverty due to bad governance, one item that should not form part of any legislative discourse is wastage. The National Assembly should be proffering solutions on how to revamp an economy it largely contributed to its decline via its exorbitant budgetary allocations and failure to effectively check the excesses of the Executive.
Most importantly, the proposed SUVs allocation runs afoul of the provision of Section 84 of the Constitution. The stated section empowers the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission to determine the salaries and allowances of all public officers. In the discharge of this responsibility, RMAFC publishes details of the remuneration package for political, public, and judicial office holders from time to time.
Nigerians need to activate their supervisory role over their elected representatives. They should desist from the slavish attitude of singing the praise of politicians whenever they are fed with the crumbs of office. Rather, they need to constructively engage their representatives and demand nothing short of good representation. Fortunately, the position of the general public on the instant matter is unanimous.
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources , Heineken Lokpobiri, has said he would hold Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited accountable on dates scheduled for completion of rehabilitation of the country’s refineries. Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, at the weekend said his administration would soon award the contract for the reconstruction of the Ikenne township road.