Senator admits to ₦21m monthly pay amid nationwide hardship

In a startling revelation, Senator Kawu Sumaila, representing Kano South, has admitted to receiving ₦21 million monthly as a "running cost" for his office despite ongoing economic hardships nationwide.

His statement comes shortly after former President Olusegun Obasanjo accused federal lawmakers of self-enriching through inflated salaries and allowances—a claim the Senate has vehemently denied.

In an interview with BBC Hausa, Sumaila, who previously served as an aide to former President Muhammadu Buhari, disclosed that the official salary of a senator is approximately ₦1 million per month.

Senator Sumaila Kawu clarified that his monthly pay was less than ₦1 million but gets ₦21 million as cost for running his office. [X, formerly Twitter] Pulse Nigeria

However, the take-home pay drops to around ₦600,000 after tax deductions.

"The amount of salary received per month is less than N1 million. If there are cuts, it comes back to about ₦600,000," Sumaila clarified.

He then revealed, "In the Senate, each senator is given N21 million every month as the cost of running his office."

This admission has intensified public scrutiny on the remuneration of lawmakers, especially given the contrasting figures provided by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC).

RMAFC salary peg for lawmakers

According to the RMAFC, a senator's monthly salary and allowances officially total ₦1,063,860, a far cry from the ₦21 million running cost revealed by Senator Sumaila.

The commission's breakdown includes a basic salary of ₦168,866, with various allowances for personal and office upkeep.

This discrepancy between official figures and actual take-home perks has fueled ongoing debates about the fairness and transparency of lawmakers' compensation in Nigeria.