Government’s actions raise questions amid growing economic hardship

In the lead-up to the nationwide #EndBadGovernance protests scheduled for August 1 to 10, the Nigerian government faces increasing scrutiny over its spending habits and commitments to reducing the cost of governance.

Despite pledges from the House of Representatives to halve their salaries for six months, recent findings suggest that the government may not be fully transparent with the public.

On July 18, during a plenary session, Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu announced that lawmakers were willing to sacrifice half of their salaries to show solidarity with Nigerians during these challenging times.

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“This time is calling for sacrifice,” Kalu stated. “People here are willing to make sacrifices. Please bear with the government a little. Let’s make sacrifices with our salaries.”

Had the lawmakers followed through, their pledge would have saved N108 million in July alone. However, Topnaija gathered that members of the House of Representatives retained their full salaries, raising doubts about the sincerity of their earlier promises.

Adding to the controversy, it was discovered that the presidency spent a staggering N684,148,266 on honorariums, presidential trips, and President Bola Tinubu’s salary in July. This sum is N36.1 million more than what the lawmakers would have saved over six months if they had halved their salaries as promised, according to FIJ.

Critics are questioning how these expenses align with the president’s repeated calls for Nigerians to endure economic hardship. On Wednesday, President Tinubu urged the public to “look beyond the present temporary pains and aim at the larger picture” while acknowledging that “this period may be hard on us and there is no doubt that it is tough on us.”

Details from the government’s spending records paint a different picture. On July 13, five separate payments totaling over N90 million were made for presidential honorariums. Additional payments for honorariums, along with N500 million spent on presidential trips, followed in the subsequent days.

President Tinubu’s July salary alone was N13,053,466.37, more than the combined salaries of 21 House of Representatives members earning N600,000 monthly.

The state house also spent N85,369,224 on renting the Continental Hotel in Abuja and decorating various locations for the June 12 Democracy Day celebration, further raising questions about the government’s spending priorities during a time of widespread economic hardship.

These revelations have fueled public criticism, particularly in light of a recent survey by the Africa Polling Institute (API), which found that 84% of Nigerians were dissatisfied with President Tinubu’s leadership. The survey indicated that a majority of Nigerians believe the country is headed in the wrong direction, a sentiment that has only intensified with the government’s apparent reluctance to cut costs.

The government’s spending habits are also under scrutiny following President Tinubu’s appointment of 48 ministers, the highest number in Nigeria’s history, and the recent creation of a Ministry of Livestock, which many see as an unnecessary expansion of government bureaucracy.