No Senate, no peace, Lawan tells Nigerians

Senator Ahmad Lawan has warned that any call for scrapping the Senate is a call for anarchy.

Nigerians believe that the Senate, which consists of some of the highest paid lawmakers in the world, has little or nothing to show for its huge budget. Many, therefore call for it to be disbanded.

According to former Kaduna senator Shehu Sani’s 2018 revelation, each Nigerian Senator earned $450,000 (N162 million) in annual allowances and $25,000 (N9 million) as basic salary. This meant that they earned more than the American President whose take-home pay is $450,000.

In October, a member of the House of Representatives, Simon Karu, said that each member of the House earned N9.3 million monthly, adding that most of the funds were spent on constituency’s high demands.

Nigerians believe the lawmakers are too expensive and want the Senate and the House scrapped.

But Lawan, who is the President of the Senate, said that could lead to chaos and anarchy.

Lawan made his arguement at a retreat for top management staff of the National Assembly and National Assembly Service Commission in Abuja on Friday.

He described the Senate as a leveler which ensured that all parts of the country are equally represented unlike the House of Representatives where states with higher populations produce the highest number of lawmakers.

The Senate President also faulted the argument of those clamouring for the scrapping of the Senate because of the perceived jumbo pay being earned by the senators.

He said the annual budget of the National Assembly is less than one per cent of the nation’s 2021 budget.