ABUJA — The Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has unveiled plans to review the salaries of political office holders in Nigeria, describing current earnings as inadequate, outdated, and out of touch with their rising responsibilities.
Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja on Monday, RMAFC Chairman, Mohammed Shehu, disclosed that President Bola Tinubu currently earns just ₦1.5 million monthly, while ministers receive less than ₦1 million — figures that have remained unchanged since 2008.
“You are paying the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria ₦1.5 million a month, with a population of over 200 million people. Everybody believes that it is a joke,” Shehu said.
He argued that unrealistic remuneration was a recipe for inefficiency and temptation. “You cannot pay a minister less than ₦1m per month since 2008 and expect him to put in his best without necessarily being involved in some other things. You pay either a CBN governor or the DG ten times more than you pay the President. That is just not right,” he added.
The commission clarified that it has no mandate to fix the minimum wage for civil servants but is constitutionally empowered to determine the pay structure for political, judicial, and legislative office holders.
However, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) swiftly rejected the proposal, blasting it as “insensitive” at a time of growing inequality, economic hardship, and hidden perks already enjoyed by politicians.
“The idea of raising salaries for politicians when ordinary Nigerians are reeling under worsening inequality is unacceptable,” the labour union stated.
Beyond salaries, Shehu revealed that the commission had also begun a long-overdue review of Nigeria’s vertical revenue-sharing formula, which has remained unchanged since 1992. The current formula allocates 52.68% of federally collected revenue to the Federal Government, 26.72% to states, and 20.60% to local governments, with 4.18% set aside for special funds.
He said the new review would be “inclusive, data-driven, and transparent,” involving consultations with the Presidency, National Assembly, governors, civil society, and the private sector.
The commission’s latest push comes after several failed attempts under past administrations to adjust the formula, largely due to political resistance and the fear of reducing the Federal Government’s hefty share of national revenue.
While RMAFC insists that “realistic salaries” for politicians are necessary, labour leaders maintain that raising the pay of office holders at this time would only widen Nigeria’s economic divide.
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