El-Rufai Replies Dogara, Gives Details of Security Vote, Salary

Challenges Dogara to do same
John Shiklam in Kaduna

The Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, on Monday disclosed details of expenditure by the state government following last Friday’s accusations by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara.

Yakubu and the governor had last Friday challenged each other on issues of accountability while speaking at the end of a retreat for the management of the National Assembly in Kaduna.
El-Rufai had in his remarks during the occasion, asked the National Assembly to make its budget public for the sake of accountability.

However, in his comments, Dogara had challenged state governors to make public how they spend their security votes and local government funds.
The governor in a statement in Kaduna yesterday said he operates a transparent government, adding that there was nothing to hide about his expenditure.

The governor who gave details of the state government expenditure including his salary and pay slip, also challenged Dogara to present details of the National Assembly budget.
The governor reiterated his call on the National Assembly leadership to also disclose the details of the National Assembly budget and the salaries and allowances of its leadership.
The statement said the call to the National Assembly was not a personal one, but it is one which the leadership of the National Assembly owes to all Nigerians.

The statement signed by Samuel Aruwan, spokesman to the governor, said the challenge is a necessary step to improve and strengthen democracy, stressing that the Kaduna State Government has consistently made public all its budget details.

Explaining, further, the statement disclosed that details of actual spending in 2015 for security in the state budgets are also publicly available via the annual report of the Accountant-General of the Federation accessible on www.kdsg.gov.ng. adding that the 2015 accounts of the state government have been audited, and the audit summary published in major newspapers and on the state website on June 2016.

The statement said the state government would continue to remain transparent and open in all its finances.
“El-Rufai is today making publicly available his pay-slip as governor of the state. In February 2017, the state government paid the governor a net salary of N470,521.74, with the following details: Income, Deductions, Basic Salary N185,308.75, Hardship Allowance -N370,617.50, Gross Pay- N555,926.25 PAYE – N85,404.51, total deduction – N85,401.51, Net Pay- N470,521.74.

“The amount may appear puny but it reflects what the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) approved as the salary and allowances of every state governor adjusted to reflect provision in-kind of accommodation and transportation.

“El-Rufai would like to reiterate his call for the National Assembly leadership to do the same and disclose the details of the it budget, and the salaries and allowances of its leadership.
“The call to open National Assembly is not a personal one. It is one which the leadership of the National Assembly owes to all Nigerians. It is therefore disingenuous for the Speaker to use sate government budgets as the excuse for the opacity of the National Assembly budget.

In 2016, the National Assembly budget for its 469 members was larger than the capital budget of Kaduna State, with close to 10 million inhabitants. It is also larger than the entire budget of several Nigerian states. Indeed, over the past 10 years from 2008, the National Assembly as an institution has cost the country over a trillion naira without any detail on how this amount was allocated and spent.

“There is no state government in Nigeria with a budget nearly as opaque as that of National Assembly. In March 2016, this National Assembly, led by its Chairman, promised to provide a detailed breakdown of the National Assembly budget. Nigerians are waiting,” the statement said.