N’Assembly Members’ Severance Package as Conduit Pipe

As the Ninth National  Assembly winds down, there are concerns about the humongous severance packages paid to senators and the members of House of Representatives, despite the 2019 Court of Appeal judgment declaring the payment of severance allowances to elected or appointed public office holders as morally unjustifiable, Alex Enumah writes

Following the recent notice given by Clerk of the House of the House of Representatives, Yahaya Danzaria, to the members of the  National Assembly, regarding their severance packages, there are reports that its management has commenced the process of their clearance for the collection of the severance packages. 

 The Ninth Assembly, which was inaugurated on June 11, 2019, is expected to wind down by the first week of June, while the 10th Assembly is billed for inauguration on June 13, 2023.

 The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, read out the Clerk’s notice to the members on the floor.

Danzaria wrote that the honourable members “should collect their clearance forms for the payment of severance gratuity from the Office of the Clerk to the House and submit same after completion in Annex Room 2.154 or 2.031, Finance and Accounts Directorate on or before Friday, June 9, 2023.”

Over N30 billion has been budgeted for severance and welcome packages for outgoing and incoming members and aides in the 2023 Appropriation Act, even though there is a subsisting decision of the  Court of Appeal against payments of severance packages to public officers.

There are even reports that the N30.17 billion severance package for National Assembly members exceeds the Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Allocation Commission’s (RMFAC) provision by about N27.36 billion.

 It was also gathered that the members of the National Assembly were allocated about N2.81 billion, with senators getting N664.94 million while the House of Representatives’ members would be paid N2.15 billion.

The President of the Senate would receive N7.45 million, the deputy senate president, N6.93million and the other 107 senators would get N6.08 million each.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives is expected to receive N7.43million, the deputy speaker N6.86 million and the 358 members N5.96 million each.

The severance package of the lawmakers was collated from a document obtained from the website of the RMFAC. According to RMFAC, political office holders were entitled to 300 per cent of their annual salary as a severance package.

Going by RMFAC’s recommendation, the lawmakers were supposed to receive N2.81 billion instead of the N30.17 billion budgeted by the National Assembly.

THISDAY observed that the severance allowance was separate from other financial packages, which may be equivalent to the retirement benefits or pensions for some of the political office holders.

The ninth National Assembly’s severance package was N7 billion higher than what was approved by the Senator Bukola Saraki-led eighth assembly.

At the twilight of the Saraki-led assembly, the sum of N23.68 billion was approved as a severance package for lawmakers at the time.

 Since 1999, officials in both the executive and legislative arms of government at the federal and state levels have been receiving mouth-watering benefits, thus draining public resources. Although the exact amount of severance allowances received by ministers and other executive members remain.shrouded in secrecy.

Media reports in 2019 had estimated that the pensions paid by 21 states to 47 former governors in the previous four years exceeded N40 billion.

These generous entitlements to former governors, which were first introduced in Lagos State had since spread to nearly all the states, as almost all former governors, except perhaps, the former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, who reportedly declined the offer, enacted laws to enable them to enjoy what many described as opulent lifestyles even after leaving office.

Some of these former governors were also said to have enacted laws for their extravagant funeral ceremonies when they pass on to glory.

 In some states, these laws provide for the construction of lavish mansions for the former governors, and the provision of a befitting palace for them in their state capitals or Abuja, the nation’s capital. The deputy governor is also entitled to an accommodation allowance equal to 300 per cent of their annual basic salary.

More worrisome is the fact that many of these former governors are now serving as senators, ministers, or holding other high public offices where they receive substantial remunerations. This raises serious questions about the ethical implications of such blatant misuse of public funds.

Despite the mounting pressure on several states to halt the payment of exorbitant amounts to their former leaders, the practice has continued. 

Attempts to use the court to halt this practice have also been futile. Even though the 2019 Court of Appeal judgment deemed the payment of severance allowances to elected or appointed public office holders as morally unjust, it came as a surprise to many Nigerians that state governors chose to ignore the ruling. Their argument was hinged on the claim that their respective states had enacted valid laws that upheld the payment of pensions and severance allowances.

 The Court of Appeal made the ruling in response to an appeal (marked: CA/A/810/2017) filed by the Kogi State Government. The court held that the payment of huge salaries and allowances to elected public office holders and political appointees during their tenure made it unethical for them to demand gratuity or severance allowance for serving in such positions for three to eight years.

The case arose from a dispute between the Kogi State Government and some former members of the Kogi State Local Government Service Commission (KGSLGSC), who had served for four years from February 2013 to February 2017.

The former council officials had sued the Kogi State governor, Secretary to the State Government, Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, and Kogi State Local Government Service Commission in a case heard at the National Industrial Court in Abuja.

 They asserted that they were entitled to a total of N55.4 million, which represented the accumulated arrears of their salaries for 17 months, four years’ worth of leave bonuses, and severance payment upon the expiration of their tenure.

The claimants were: Nuhu Ahmed (ex-chairman of the commission), M.O Sule, Momoh Azia, Michael Akeji, James Olumorin and George Abogun. They asked the court to compel the state government to pay them the severance package.

 Rather than give judgment in the case after taking arguments on the originating summons and preliminary objection raised by the defendants, the presiding judge of the court, Justice R. B. Hastrup, in his decision, reportedly ordered parties to file more pleadings. This made the Kogi State government approach the Court of Appeal.

In their judgment, the three-man panel of the court faulted the payment of severance allowance, pension or gratuity to political office holders and political appointees, insisting that the practice was unethical.

Submitting that it amounted to gross social injustice, the court held that it could not be justified in the context of the nation’s present social realities.

 In the lead judgment delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, the court held that it was wicked and morally wrong for political office holders and political appointees, who helped themselves to public funds while in office, to claim entitlement to pension and severance allowances.

 The judge held that it was unjustifiable for some few politicians, who hold office for not more than eight years, to allocate huge public funds to themselves in the name of pension and severance packages while civil servants, who committed most of their active years to the service of the nation are denied their retirement benefits.

He added that it was wrong for political appointees and elected public office holders, who do not work as long as the career civil servants to quickly get paid huge severance allowances upon leaving office in addition to the huge wealth they acquired while holding such offices and without having been subjected to any contributory pension schemes.

 “I must state here that the claimants’ claim for payment of severance allowance because the tenure of their appointment has come to an end, is as unfounded as is morally wrong. As I have held that their letters of appointment did not stipulate their entitlement to such payment. They did not produce any law or any document or instrument that entitles them to such payment.

“The fact that elected public office holders and political appointees are paid huge amounts of money as monthly salaries and other forms of allowances, while in office, is common knowledge in Nigeria and is not reasonable to open question.

“It is also common knowledge that many of them after an office tenure of between three to eight years become stupendously wealthy, exhibiting mind-blowing opulence and splendour. Yet, these officeholders insist on being paid severance allowance for holding such offices.”

Continuing, the judge said “It is not morally right to pay an elected public officer or political appointee pension and gratuity or severance allowance for holding such an office for three to eight years as the case may be. It cannot be justified in the context of our present social realities; it amounts to gross social injustice.”

The panel, which had Justices Abubakar Datti Yahaya and Tinuade Akomolafe-Wilson, also agreed with the lead judgment.

Given that former President Muhammadu Buhari failed to give the matter public attention, it is unexpected that President Bola Tinubu will take a hard decision on this issue since he initiated the practice of payment of pension for governors in Lagos.