The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Ebonyi State, alongside academics, lawyers, and civil society actors, has condemned the proposed salary increment for political officeholders, describing it as unjustifiable amid worsening economic hardship.
Speaking in Abakaliki on Sunday, the NLC chairman in the state, Egwu Oguguo, urged the Federal Government and the National Assembly to shelve the plan and focus instead on improving the welfare of ordinary Nigerians.
Oguguo, who also lectures at Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike, argued that the proposal was “anti-people and against the law of natural justice.”
“It is very insensitive to contemplate raising the pay of government officials while citizens are struggling with hunger and multidimensional poverty. Any such increase will widen inequality, fuel social vices, and provoke public anger,” he warned.
He faulted the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) for considering a review of politicians’ pay while the recently approved N70,000 minimum wage had already been eroded by inflation.
Similarly, Fidelis Ochim, of the Federal University, Lafia, described the move as “a disservice to Nigerians enduring hardship caused by years of economic mismanagement.”
A legal practitioner in Abakaliki, Chidi Ude, stressed that Nigeria’s leaders, already among the highest-paid politicians in the world, could not justify higher pay when pensioners and civil servants were still being owed arrears.
“The proposed increment lacks justification and could further cripple the economy,” Ude said.
The state coordinator of the Civil Society Coalition for Good Governance, Angela Nwafor, said the plan reinforced public perception that the political class was disconnected from reality.
She recalled a controversial statement once made by the Senate President: “You protest, we are eating,” saying the push for pay rise reflects the same mindset.
“It is not leadership when the comfort of less than one per cent of the population is prioritised over basic needs like education, health, and infrastructure,” she noted.
The stakeholders were unanimous that government should abandon the idea and channel scarce resources into fixing the economy, addressing insecurity, and improving workers’ welfare.
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