Ovie Omo-Agege, the Deputy Senate President, has said no member of the National Assembly is collecting jumbo pay.
Omo-Agege, who stated this through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Yomi Odunuga, said lawmakers collected only what the Federal Government approved for them as public office holders.
He said, “The leadership of the Senate, through the Senate President, has explained that the issue of jumbo pay does not arise in the National Assembly. Each lawmaker is paid what is statutorily due to their office and these figures are open to verification by anyone who is interested in doing so.
“All it takes is for such persons to contact the Revenue Mobilisation office and the information would be made available.”
Meanwhile, Wole Oke, a five-term member of the House of Representatives representing Oriade/Obokun Federal Constituency of Osun State, said recently that his take-home pay per month is N606,000 while a rep’s running cost is N8.5m.
Oke said, “The running costs amount to N8.5m. How much is N8.5m to me as a person? If you have to embark on research, looking at all the bills that I have sponsored in the House, you will see that those bills that I sponsored are not ones you can just come by anyhow; they are not bills that you pick on the shelve.
“In the American Congress, do you know how much their running costs are? It is $1m. Do you know how much their salary is? It is $14,000 per month. Yet, you pay me $2,000 as salary. Anybody who knows me too well will know that what I earn as salary and as running costs are peanuts compared to what I can earn from my private engagements.”
