Former Lagos state governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is the biggest beneficiary of the controversial jumbo pay for ex-governors in the state, the magazine has learnt.
This may have been responsible for recent decision of the state House of Assembly not to repeal the state law allowing former chief executive officers of the state to draw multi-billion naira pension from the coffers of the state government.
Recall that a federal high court in Lagos, five days ago directed the Attorney General of the federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami to make sure that cash drawn by these former governors are refunded back to the state.
The court also directed the Justice Minister to challenge the legality of the law allowing ex-governors and others to receive such pay.
The directive only affects former governors serving as senators and other public service capacity.
But the state Assembly said it will not stop the juicy pay to the former governors.
Zamfara is the state in the country that has stopped the outrageous pension to those who have served as governors, deputy governors and Speakers of the state house of Assembly.
This came on the heels of repeal by the state Assembly the legislation allowing former state officials to collect juicy pay after they have left office.
But the Chairman, House Committee on Information and Strategy, Tunde Braimoh said on Sunday that Lagos Assembly would not replicate Zamfara Assembly which recently repealed pension law for ex -governors.
He said the federal government determine for the state how it manages it affairs, insisting that the pension legislation was made in the interest of the state.
According to Braimoh “Therefore, legislators make laws that are in tune with the yearnings and dynamics of their society.
Until another legislature comes to alter, review or amend the law, the law is meant to be obeyed.
The judiciary cannot pronounce that a law by the state is unconstitutional unless such state law is contradictory to the constitution.”
Former Governor Tinubu government enacted the law which allowed him and his successors to benefit from the jumbo pay.
The other two ex-governors are Babatunde Fashola and Akinwumi Ambode.
Fashola, current minister of works has however denied benefiting from the large pay since he left office in 2015.
In that case, Tinubu may be the biggest beneficiary so far having left office 12 years ago.
The package includes the payment of huge monthly salary to the former governors, as well as buying houses for them in Abuja or Lagos, depending on their choice.
The benefits also include the purchase of three expensive cars for the former governors who have served in the state, every three years.
“Consider that Tinubu has been drawing 100 per cent of his monthly salary while in office from the state government since he left office in 2007, the amount he alone collected must be in billions,” said Jafar Kamal, a public affairs analyst.
Apart from this, Kamal who spoke with the magazine in Lagos said, the state has spent huge sums of money buying state of the art vehicles for Tinubu as part of the provision of the law.
“Those cars will be bullet proof or anti-ballistic vehicles which could cost up to N50m. The state government will also be the one maintaining the vehicles for him,” the analyst said.
He explained that there could be other hidden benefits not disclosed to the public for the former governor because of his position as the “Godfather of the state.”
