In the midst of hardship and hunger ravaging Nigerians, there is a heightened controversy over the pay package of Nigerian Federal lawmakers.

It is a known fact that Nigerian legislators, just like their counterparts in the executive and judicial arms, take home humongous salaries, allowances, impress and other emoluments, ranking among the highest, if not really the highest among their peers in the comity of nations.

The latest controversy and public scrutiny was elicited by the comment of a former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, while interacting with a delegation of six members of the House of Representatives, led by the member for Ideato Federal Constituency of Imo State, Hon. Ikenga  Ugochinyere Imo, who visited him at his home in Abeokuta.

The former president berated the legislators for approving all sorts of unjustifiable allowances for themselves, by themselves, noting that it was quite wrong.

While members of the National Assembly took exception to the comment of the former president and made efforts to disprove his narratives, the chairman of Revenue Mobilization, Allocation and Physical Commission (RMAFC), Muhammed Bello either  by himself or recruited by  leadership of the National Assembly, presented himself as a willing tool in defense of the federal legislators, churning out some figures to confuse Nigerians, that the total pay package of each members of the National Assembly, especially the Senators are just a little above N1 million.

But disturbed by by this daylight lie being told to deceive Nigerians, the Senator representing Kano South, Senator Samailu Kawu, spoke up, making it clear that he, just like other members of the Senate, receives over N21 million as monthly take home package.

How wicked could the RAMFC boss be, Nigerians ask. The margin between the figures is wide, wide enough that even the blind can see.

Meanwhile, in as much as this humongous pay package can be described as quite unjust, considering the standard of living of the ordinary Nigerian, some analysts have argued  that this is not the problem of Nigeria.

Assuming members of these arms of Government are content and satisfied with this enormous wealth they have approved for themselves from the common patrimony of Nigerians, it would have just been ‘a scratch on the back’ of the wealth of the country. The rich Nigerian economy would have carried on as if nothing had happened.

In as much as appropriating such humongous amount of funds to themselves is a high level of corruption, it is nothing compared to the level of embezzlement of public funds by these leaders, as seen in recent times.

As huge as Nigerians think the pay package of these political office holders are, the truth is they do not regard it as anything. That is why they will be laughing out loud over the much ado about the N21 million monthly take home of the legislators, as revealed by an insider, a member of the Senate , Senator Samailu Kawu.

These people struggle and scramble for what they call juicy positions, be it in the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary. This is where they are able to make the kind of money they look out for. Monies running in hundreds of million to units and tens of Billions.

It is in such juicy positions that they do have opportunity to divert billions mapped out for some public projects into their personal pockets. This is how the common wealth of the country is frittered away beyond imagination by few criminally minded individuals who bulldozed their way into the corridors of power.

Come to think of it, the worst narrative is that of the chairman of Revenue Mobilization and Physical Commission came out in broad daylight to deceive Nigerians about the salaries and allowances of the federal lawmakers.

If it were to be in a sane society, he should not last a day longer in that office, since his deceit and inglorious venture have been exposed and disproved by an insider, a beneficiary of the humongous pay package of the federal legislators.

C- Advocate therefore calls for attitudinal change in occupants of public office, with a view to ensuring a return to leadership rather than mere politics, with the overall interest of the electorate at heart.