By Michael Onwuka
The Enugu State House of Assembly recently embarked on a legislative voyage to review the Enugu State Gubernatorial Pensions Law 2017 (as amended), which is a pension regime for former governors and their deputies.
The move by the Chief Edward Ubosi led assembly elicited wide condemnation by Nigerians, including non-state actors. The condemnation stems from the ‘satanic’ provisions in the proposed amendment forwarded to the assembly as an Executive Bill.
Recall that in compliance with Sect. 124(5) of the Nigerian Constitution which empowers the House of Assembly of the State to enact a law to that effect, the state assembly under the leadership of Chief Eugene Odo on Aug. 2, 2007 enacted the Enugu State Gubernatorial Pensions Law, 2007.
According to the law, any person who has held office as governor or deputy governor under the provisions of the Constitution shall be entitled to Pension for life at a rate equivalent to the annual salary of the incumbent governor or deputy governor respectively provided that such a person was not removed from office by the process of impeachment or for breach of any provisions of the Constitution.
What is, however, intriguing are the new provisions in the proposed 2021 amendment which even scaled the first reading without much ado.
For instance, the proposed amendment prescribes payment of salaries to spouses of former governors and deputies, a health package of N1million. It also captures all former governors, deputy governors and Military Administrators in the Old Anambra State who are of Enugu State origin.
At the moment, the beneficiaries shall include Chief Jim Nwobodo, Chief Okwesilieze Nwodo, Navy Capt. Allison Madueke (rtd.), Dr Chimaroke Nnamani, Mr Sullivan Chime while the incumbent governor, Chief Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi will join in about two years time.
The aforementioned ex-governor’s and their deputies shall be entitled to the following annually:
- Pension of N26, 640, 000
- House maintenance allowance which is 200 per cent of annual basic salary.
- Vehicle maintenance allowance which is 200 per cent of annual basic salary.
- Medical allowance not exceeding N12million
- Free medical care
- Adequate security
- Salaries of three domestic staff @N100, 000 each.
This brings the total sum that the state government shall be spending on current ex-governors, deputies and their spouses to about N1.15billion annually and another N1.25billion for their vehicles every four years.
Sadly, this is happening in a state with challenged social amenities and at a period when the public workers are one of the least paid in the country; a time the state has failed to pay the N30, 000 New Minimum Wage to all cadres of workers; retirees are owed years of gratuities and pension and salaries of workers in the Ministry of Justice reviewed downward.
We are talking about an administration that has failed to provide potable water to residents of the state capital and its environs; a state where farmers in rural communities no longer go to farms for fear of their lives due to the activities of herdsmen.
Is it not mind boggling that even in the midst of these myriads of challenges, the state government will have the audacity to send such ‘satanic’ and anti-people bill to the state assembly to further swell the bank accounts of already rich former governors and their deputies at the expense of the masses whose money will be used to service those politicians?
The situation is more worrisome as the state government and the ‘rubber stamp’ legislature decided to toe the path of ignominy which some progressive states like Imo, Zamfara, Lagos and Kwara have jettisoned. Little wonder, then, the backlash, negative reactions and protests that trailed the move to pass the bill.
A former spokesperson of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the South East, Mr Hycinth Ngwu described the bill as obnoxious, repugnant and repressive.
Mr Ngwu observed that should the bill be passed and assented to, there will come a time that after the payment of those categories of pensioners, little or nothing will be left for other government services.
Also, a pressure group, Save Enugu Group (SEG) in a statement by its National Coordinator, Mr Willy Ezugwu accused the assembly speaker, Ubosi of being blinded by his perceived gubernatorial ambition in 2023 to support the obnoxious and anti-people clauses introduced as proposed amendment since he hopes to be one of the ultimate beneficiaries.
Mr Ezugwu said that the legislators have by their actions insulted the sensibilities of residents of the state and issued the assembly a 21-day ultimatum to drop the bill or face mass action.
“We, therefore, warn members of the state assembly not to set the very peaceful state on fire in pursuit of the political ambition of one man and demand unreserved public apology from both the speaker and the House Leader, Mr Ikechukwu Ezugwu for worsening an already bad situation with insulting insistence,” Ezugwu said.
It is, however, gratifying that the state assembly listened to the voice of reason and stepped down the proposed new amendment bill. Paradoxically, the assembly speaker even owned up that there are lots of provisions in the amendment bill that are not constitutional. Yet, he allowed it to scale first reading.
In all, analysts have variously described the Enugu State Gubernatorial Pensions Law Amendment Bill as provocative, selfish, an affront on the masses and only fit for the dustbin. Some commentators have gone a step further to advice the state assembly to repeal the extant law and channel the resources to more productive sectors.
On the part of the executive, one wonders whether this ‘parting gift’ is the definition of the good governance and enhanced social services that the governor promised to residents of the state upon his inauguration on May 29, 2015.
