ABUJA – True figure of wardrobe allowance of Senators of the Federal Republic is five hundred and six thousand, six hundred Naira (N506,600.00) only per annum.
This is contrary to the touted N8.64 billion in some news media that has formed the topic of discussion in several quarters.
Making the disclosure yesterday, while on a courtesy visit to Senate President Bukola Saraki, Chairman of Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) Engr. Elias Mbam condemned recent media reports that exaggerated the wardrobe allowances of the Federal Lawmakers, explaining that wardrobe allowance is 25 percent of the basic salary which when broken down amounts to N506, 600 per legislator, per annum.
“For the purpose of clarity, what is provided for wardrobe allowance is 25 percent of the basic salary and if you work that out, what every senator will get is N506, 6000 per annum and I wonder the relationship between that amount and the seventeen or twenty-something-million that was quoted.
Furthermore Sir, sometime last week there was a publication that we have reviewed the 2008 remuneration Act and went further to outline the entitlements of each public officer, please that is not from the commission.
The commission is currently reviewing the 2008 Remuneration Act and hopefully, we expect it will be ready by the end of the third quarter, and once we are ready we will make public and of course present it to the NASS.
So I will advise that those who may be misleading the public should come down to our office to clarify and get the proper information or go to our website because all the issues relating to remuneration are very well stated in our website”, the RMFAC boss stressed.
This is even as the Senate President Bukola Saraki has ordered RMAFC to publish the allowances of the Federal legislators on the Commission’s website in a matter of days.
He also urged that current challenges facing the country makes it imperative for RMAFC to review the allowances of the federal lawmakers.
“I want to commend your initiative frankness and also being able to educate the public because I am sure for the last 48 hours some of these stories being churned out in the media have given concern to Nigerians and giving the wrong impression and you can see that some of these are all fairy tales than reality. So, I am happy that you have come to clear that.
I think it also appears to those our friends in the media, that there is need for responsible reporting. Sometimes, some of these create more concern and division than help. The Chairman has said that their website and office have all these information and the public should know that the fixing of remuneration is the responsibility of the commission.
I think part of your responsibilities in which we show interest as senators is the issue of monitoring revenue because we have serious revenue challenges and I believe that leakages and non compliance by different agencies where revenues that should go to the federation account should not have been used internally by the agencies or not fully disclosed or reported is having a great impact”, the SP continued.
Throwing more light on the matter before journalist, the RMFAC boss, explained, “wardrobe allowance is an allowance for public officers to assist them to dress properly. It doesn’t include Housing and other allowances.
It is 25 per cent of the basic salary for senators and if you apply that, every senator will receive 506, 600 per annum
House of Rep is less but I don’t have the figure. It is less than that. Certainly there are other allowances. There is utility allowance, there is Housing, there is entertainment allowance and at the end of the service, there is severance allowance.
We will do a downward review of the allowances of law makers due to parameters like the state of the economy, the inflation, the capacity to pay, the reality of the day. So we will use all these to determine what is fair within the context of the present situation. The parameters will form the new Remuneration Act”.
ENDS.

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