Salary Increase for Political Office Holders: RMAFC Officials Sing Discordant Tunes as Spokesman Denies Claim by own Commissioner

The Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has denied media report that it has approved the increment of salaries of political office holders, judicial and public office holders by 114 per cent.

In an exclusive discussion with LEADERSHIP, RMAFC Public Relations Officer, Christian Nwachukwu, said President Bola Tinubu had not given approval for the increment of salaries of public servants.Rakiya Tanko-Ayuba, a Federal Commissioner in the Commission, had made the salary increment remark when she represented RMAFC chairman, Mohammad Shehu, at the presentation of the reports of the reviewed remuneration package to Kebbi State Governor, Nasir Idris, in Birnin Kebbi, on Tuesday.

Tanko-Ayuba reportedly said that implementation of the reviewed remuneration packages was effective from January 1, 2023, a claim that has been strongly denied by the commission’s spokesman.

“Not my chairman. Not my chairman. My chairman has never made any statement on it. And I have not made any statement on it. No statement from chairman, no statement from me. So, I don’t know. I heard one of the commissioners said it. I don’t want to be quoted,” the RMAFC spokesperson told our correspondent while denying the commissioner’s claim.

“No approval yet. There is no approval yet. I don’t know the source of that story. Everything is under the process. It has to come as a Bill for Mr President to assent.

“The President has not given assent. Until the President gives assent, you cannot take it as if it has taken effect. You know that. You are a journalist.“I don’t want to be quoted wrongly. The President has not given assent to it. It is still under the process,” Nwachukwu said in a telephone conversation.

Asked if the National Assembly has begun work on the proposal, he said: “it will be sent to National Assembly. Whichever way, whether it has been sent or not, the President has not assented to it. All those legislative process has to be completed; finally, it will land on Mr President’s table for assent. That has not been completed.

”When our correspondent asked if that means that the story making the rounds on salary increment was not true, Nwachukwu said: “just take it the way you understand it, so that you don’t quote me anyhow.

”Asked whether the RMAFC has sent the executive bill through FEC to the National Assembly for deliberation, Nwachukwu simply said: “everything is under the process.”