Okorocha asks RMAFC to slash by 50% salaries, allowances of President, NASS, governors

Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State has asked the chairman and members of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) to, as a matter of urgency, review downward by 50 percent, the salaries and allowances of the President, governors, National Assembly members, and all other political office holders, both elected and appointed.

This is to make the offices less attractive and check the excesses that go with the fat payments for such offices.

Okorocha spoke Wednesday in Owerri, the Imo State capital, when he hosted the chairman of RMAFC, Elias Mbam and other members of the commission to a breakfast meeting at the Government House, at the end of their annual retreat in the state.

The governor argued that with a downward review of salaries and allowances of political office holders, such positions or offices would become less-attractive, and would go to reduce the tension that always go with contest or scramble for such offices.

He also said that any drastic reduction of the take-home pay of political office holders would equally, to a large extent, reduce poverty among the populace, and also reduce crimes mostly borne out of the envy occasioned by these bloated salaries and allowances of political office holders.

According to Okorocha, by making the salaries and allowances of political office holders less-attractive, only those keen in rendering genuine service to the people will go for such public offices, and no more those who are coming for the privileges or benefits of the offices.

“When the salaries and allowances of public office holders, whether elected or appointed, are reviewed downward, at least by 50 percent, or more than that, it would make the offices less-attractive; and with that, only those who want these offices for service would go for them.

“If one knows that at the end of the month your total pay as governor or National Assembly member would be less than N500,000, most people would stay away, and only those with ideas and the genuine spirit of service would aspire for such offices,” he said.

For him, “the huge amount spent on recurrent expenses should be directed to infrastructure, while the paraphernalia of offices should be drastically reduced. Genuine people who are ready to sacrifice for their people should be encouraged for leadership positions, while those coming for the gains of the offices should be discouraged.”

He regretted that Imo State had never benefitted from Agricultural and Ecological funds being given to states, despite the state’s agricultural potentials and ecological challenges, and called for consideration.

Chairman of RMAFC, Mbam said they were satisfied with what they had seen so far in the state in terms of development and growth.