Economic hardship: Reps to return N704m 50% salary cut to Tinubu

ABUJA, Nigeria — The House of Representatives will on December 31, 2024, present the sum of N704.91 million to President Bola Tinubu as the 50 percent salary cut to aid vulnerable Nigerians in a bid to cushion the economic hardship ocassioned by the removal of petrol subsidy by the Federal government.

Recall that the lawmakers had on July 18 resolved to slash their salaries by 50% for six months and give to poor Nigerians as part of efforts to address the economic hardship.

Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas while addressing the house at the plenary said, the lawmakers had fulfilled the 50 per cent salary cut pledge and had pulled together N704.9m to be donated to poor Nigerians.

He said, “If you recall, about five months ago, we decided to contribute half of our salaries to address the critical needs of the Nigerian people. I am happy to inform you that so far, we have contributed N704,907,578.82.

“On December 31, I will lead a delegation of leadership to hand over the money to the President for the exclusive use of vulnerable Nigerians who truly need it.

“The contributions you made highlight the steadfastness and dedication of members to addressing the critical needs of Nigerians.”

The House’s decision to donate half of their salaries originated from a motion moved by Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, in July.

The motion was intended to address hunger and provide relief to Nigerians grappling with economic difficulties, as well as to quell dissatisfaction that had sparked calls for protests against bad governance.

While moving the motion, Kalu stated: “This government is doing its best, but one year is not enough to address the challenges of this country. I want to plead with our colleagues to sacrifice 50% of our salary for a period of six months.

“Our salary is N600,000 a month. I want to plead that we let go of 50% of our salary for this period.”