Proposed N160 Million SUVs For Lawmakers Violate RMAFC’s Law – Reports

According to results, the National Assembly’s proposed N160 million Sport Utility Vehicles (SUV) package for legislators is in violation of the package that the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has set forth for legislators.

Given the nation’s current economic predicament, Anaedoonline.ng says that there have been a number of controversies around the proposed car buy.

Nevertheless, the National Assembly has insisted that it is purchasing “operational vehicles” for each of its 469 members, despite resistance from the political establishment and worried Nigerians.

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The federal parliamentarians are alleged to have disregarded the RMAFC’s revenue plan designed for them and other public office holders by choosing pricey luxury sport utility vehicles (SUVs) over more affordable sedan and salon cars.

The RMAFC is responsible for deciding the wages and allowances of public officials, including members of the National Assembly, according to Section 84 of Nigeria’s 1999 constitution.

“There shall be paid to the holders of the offices mentioned in this section such remuneration, salaries and allowances as may be prescribed by the National Assembly, but not exceeding the amount as shall have been determined by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission,” Premium Times quotes section 84 of the constitution in its recent report.

Details of the compensation package owed for those holding political, public, and judicial offices in prior years had been made public by RMFAC. According to the RMFAC’s most recent document, which was released in 2007, members of the National Assembly are only entitled to an optional car loan that cannot be more than 400% of their yearly basic wages.

A senator is paid a base salary of N2.02 million per year, according to the most recent list that has been made public. As a result, they are qualified for a car loan up to N8.1 million, or 400% of their basic pay. Similar to this, a member of the House of Representatives earning N1.9 million a year in basic salary can apply to the National Assembly not exceeding N7.9 million.

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However, despite the difficult economic situation that Nigerians are currently facing, the members of the 10th National Assembly have decided to ignore the RMFAC’s proposal and buy expensive cars as “legislative oversight” instead. Many Nigerians have harshly criticised this choice, calling it callous.

According to a member of the House of Representatives who recently spoke to journalists under the condition of anonymity in response to the controversy surrounding the proposed SUVs for lawmakers, members of the House rejected saloon cars and insisted instead on Toyota Prado or Toyota Land Cruisers because many members of the previous Assembly did not use the other types of cars they had amassed for official purposes.

“Most of the lawmakers rejected the option of saloon cars because many had to give the one shared in the 9th Assembly to their wives. Those vehicles are probably not more than N80-N90 million, that particular vehicle we are talking about. In fact, some people are not going to get the vehicle until January,” the lawmaker told Premium Times.

According to Anaedoonline.ng, politicians in Nigeria purchased Peugeot 508 sedans for themselves from the public coffers in 2015 and Toyota Camry sedans in 2020. The National Assembly exceeded the limit suggested by the RMFAC list on both occasions. SUVs, a brand that has become a status symbol for Nigerian politicians with access to public finances, were the vehicle of choice for the 10th National Assembly, nevertheless.

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Nigerians have also criticised the insensitivity of the federal lawmakers and their most recent proposal for international companies, saying that they should have supported local brands to help the country’s auto industry. In a statement released on Tuesday, the Centre for Social Justice said that by placing orders with international companies rather than domestic ones, the parliamentarians were exporting employment.

Oluwatobi Ajayi, CEO of local automaker Nord Motors, responded to the situation earlier by claiming that his business had submitted a proposal to the National Assembly regarding the purchase of locally built automobiles for all lawmakers, but that it had not received any attention.

Ajayi expressed sadness over the MPs’ ongoing patronage of imported vehicles and continued rejection of local automakers who offered them offers in a post on his official X account.

“The National Assembly buying foreign-built vehicles at this time is dispiriting, especially when you consider that we are all trying to promote buy Nigeria to grow the Naira.

“A sad part of this is that we (assemblers and manufacturers of vehicles in Nigeria) actually proposed our vehicles and explained how it would make a lot of financial, technical and political sense to buy from us, but they didn’t even entertain the idea for long,” Ajayi wrote on the microblogging platform.

The production of premium automobiles, particularly SUVs, by companies like Innoson, Nords, Pro-Force, and others has increased in Nigeria during the past few years. However, it appears that Nigerian legislators think they are beneath their station.

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The MPs’ hunger for luxury appears to be at odds with Nigeria’s economic reality and the demand for a reduction in the expense of government.

The House of Representatives’ spokesperson, Akin Rotimi, said in a statement issued on Sunday that the MPs also have the choice to keep the vehicles at the end of their terms in 2027, providing they pay their debts to the National Assembly.

“For the duration of the 10th assembly (2023 – 2027), the vehicles shall remain the property of the National Assembly. At the expiration of the tenure of the 10th Assembly in 2027, should the extant assets deboarding policy of government still be in place, honourable members may have the option of making payment for the outstanding value of the vehicles to government coffers before they can become theirs, otherwise it remains the property of the National Assembly,” he said.

The National Assembly has always arbitrarily set their allowances well above what RMFAC requires, despite the obvious provisions of the constitution to the contrary. In July, the Senate distributed N2 million to each member as a break allowance, which is equal to 10% of the member’s basic yearly salary as required by law.

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