- With a proposal for about N5 billion worth of new cars, the National Assembly seems utterly inured to the plight of the people
They seem not to know that these are very austere times. Perhaps it does not matter to them. Or maybe they don’t just care. Whatever the case may be, the National Assembly (NASS) members seem to be living in a world all of their own where there is no lack, no worries and even the sun probably does not set.
Since they were sworn into office early last June to make laws for Nigeria and her people, even they know that they have found the best job in the world. For instance, they have taken as many holidays as they have wanted – perhaps more holidays than work days. They have also drawn jaw-dropping allowances and bonuses perhaps more than any other public official in the land. They have had all sorts of perks and perquisites monetised and drawn down totalling tens of millions per legislator.
The sums are so mind-troubling that they dare not make a full disclosure of them to the populace lest they start a riot. They live in the best houses across cities; they ride the plushiest cars ensconced between police escorts. They have no worries on earth it seems and when they are nibbled by nary a rodent, they make laws post haste to protect themselves. The current Bill to curtail the cyber space which would have been passed into law in just a few days were it not for unprecedented public outcry is one example and the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) which has been in the NASS for about five years is another.
But the NASS made up of the upper chamber, the Senate and the lower one, the House of Representatives have earned the reputation of a heedless and unyielding pack of prodigals. They have a noxious history of unchecked licentiousness. Since 1999 when civil rule commenced afresh in Nigeria, they have built for themselves a fairyland, a gilded house of fantasy. They live in a world far removed from the reality of their environment; no wonder the The Economist of London once described the Nigerian legislators as by far the best paid in the entire world.
This fact should make them worry, even sorry considering that they legislate over a land that has among the most wretched on earth, both in terms of number and depth of penury. Considering that they are virtually milking a country where workers’ salaries now come in arrears and where pensions hardly get paid anymore and senior citizens fall to their death on pension queues everywhere, everyday.
Considering that they rule over a country where nearly everything is imported: from staple food and poultry to petroleum products. They are not perturbed that they superintend over a country that imports everything it ought to export. Nothing worries these folks except their pernicious perks and privileges that are of course self-allotted and otherworldly.
This is why we are of the strong opinion that President Muhammadu Buhari should insist and indeed block our NASS members’ next wanton act: the planned purchase of 400 new cars for N4.7 billion. According to report, the new, latest model, state-of-art and overpriced SUVs are for routine committee work. This has nothing to do with the billions already released to the legislators as car loans.
Though some have argued that the president may be stepping beyond his bounds by publicly condemning and seeking to resist this item of the appropriation bill, we aver that the president as the custodian of the bill has a duty to protect the overall interest of the people and ensure that wastages and prodigality are eschewed in the document.
If the president upon resumption of office could turn down a N400 million Bill for new cars for the presidency, legislators too must understand the need for making some sacrifices in this period of dire economic downturn.
We are worried that our lawmakers have remained ever so wanton and we dare say unconscionable as ever, not sparing much thought for the collective good and growth of the motherland. All through history, the legislature has been the fulcrum of revolutionary ideas and change. But it is such a pity that our present lawmakers act no better than mere grubs seeking to eat up the common wealth. This is extreme self-love; it’s narcissism.
