The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has ordered the National Assembly halt the practice of fixing its members’ pay.
The judge, Chuka Obiozor, ruled in his judgment delivered on June 4 that only the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) is empowered by law to fix the salaries and remunerations of public officers.
There has been public outrage amongst Nigerians over the humongous emoluments of senators and members of the House of Representatives, despite widespread poverty and unemployment in the country.
It would be recalled that, Shehu Sani, a former member of the Nigerian Senate representing Kaduna Central Senatorial District, had in March 2018, revealed that each senator received the sum of N13.5 million monthly as running cost, in addition to N750,000 monthly consolidated salary and allowances.
Two plaintiffs, Monday Ubani, who is a former 2nd Vice-President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), and John Nwokwu, had filed a suit to challenge the constitutionality of this jumbo-sized pay said to be collected by the members of the National Assembly.
The defendants in the suit were the Attorney General of the Federation, RMAFC, the Senate, the House of Representatives and the National Assembly Service Commission.
In their argument before the court, the two chambers of the National Assembly had filed a defence denying its members ever collecting such jumbo-sized pay, but failed to disclose to the court how much members earn.
On its part, the National Assembly Service Commission filed a defence, denying being responsible for the mouthwatering pay being taken by the members of the National Assembly.
They equally contended that the plaintiffs lacked the locus standi (the legal right) to institute the action against them, contending that the plaintiffs had no cause of action against them.
