Senators, Reps To Get N30 bn Payoff

Ahead the winding down of the 9th National Assembly on June 6, its management has announced a N30 billion severance package for senators and house of Representatives members.
The announcement was made known to the members of the Assembly on Wednesday in a notice signed by the Clerk of the House, Yahaya Danzaria.

Femi Gbajabiamila, the Speaker of the House of Representatives read out the Clerk’s notice to members on the floor yesterday.

The lawmakers have been directed to submit all needed documents for the collection of the payment before June 9, the notice said.

“All honourable members to collect their clearance forms for the payment of severance gratuity from the Office of the Clerk to the House and submit same after completion in Annex Room 2.154 or 2.031, Finance and Accounts Directorate on or before Friday, June 9, 2023,” Danzaria said in the notice to members.

According to the details of this year’s budget over N30bn has been budgeted for severance and welcome package for outgoing and incoming members and their aides.

The 2023 Appropriation Acts indicates that Under statutory transfers, the National Assembly and its affiliate bodies will spend a total of N194,839,144,401 this financial year. The sum of N169bn was proposed for the federal bi-cameral legislature in the original bill.

Details of the National Assembly budget are as follows: Severance/inauguration of outgoing and incoming 9th and 10th Assembly (legislators and legislative aides) – N30,173,520,592; National Assembly Office, N30,492,518,529; Senate, N33,267,001,807; House of Representatives, N51,994,511,954; National Assembly Service Commission, N10,555,809,322; Legislatives Aides, N16,520,653,763; PAC – Senate, N118,970,215; and PAC – House of Representatives, N142,764,258.

Others are National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies, N7,411,813,596; Service Wide Vote, N671,335,001; Office of Retired Clerks and Permanent Secretaries, N1,059,121,701; Appropriation Committee Department – Senate, N125,000,000; Appropriation Committee Department – House, N165,000,000; National Assembly Library building (ongoing), N4,250,000,000.

Also in the National Assembly budget is N11,307,475,470 allocated to General Services; hosting of Conference of Speakers of African Parliament, N127,500,000; NASS Liabilities, N8,500,000,000; NASS e-Library, N255,000,000; NASS Dashboard, N118,150,000; Constitution Review, N850,000,000; completion of NASS Library Complex (repeated), 7,500,000,000; completion of NILDS HQ, N2,500,000,000; and construction of NASC building, N10,000,000,000.