Political activist and former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Timi Frank, called on Senators and House of Representatives members to urgently return the money they illegally collected from the National Assembly as “enjoyment” and “vacation” allowances on Thursday.
Frank, who made this call in a statement in Abuja, insisted that the primary role of the Legislature is to make laws for the order, security, and good governance of the country and not plunder it.
He wondered why the lawmakers have not deemed it necessary to review the nation’s minimum deemed which will benefit the masses in the face of skyrocketing inflation. Rather, they have resorted to helping themselves with funds from taxpayers’ money to catch vacation cruises.
He described the attitude of members cruises 10th National Assembly as the worst ever to happen to the country saying they appear to be far removed from the harsh economic realities inflicting excruciating pains on the average Nigerian who elected them into office.
Akpabio had on Monday night told Senators that the Clerk to the National Assembly (CNA), Magaji Tambawal, had sent a “token” (money) into their individual bank accounts to “enjoy” their annual “vacation.”
Frank said: “I have been reliably informed that what Akpabio termed token is actually in millions of Naira which belongs to taxpayers.
“According to a Senator from the Northwest geopolitical zone who confided in me, ‘each Senator received N35million while principal officers got N50million each.’
“He equally told me that each House of Representatives member got a million while their principal officers received a million each.
“The Senator said he has rejected his largesse saying: ‘Allah will not forgive me if I collect such an amount for vacation enjoyment while my constituents are suffering hardships. I will spend my vacation with my constituents in the village. I am not travelling to any other place so I don’t need the money.’
“I know Akpabio and his cohorts will rush to deny this but let them do so with evidence by publishing their bank statements for Nigerians to verify for the sake of transparency. I also dare the Clerk to the National Assembly, Magaji Tambawal, to publish the vouchers with which he paid these slush funds into the accounts of legislators.”
Frank who is the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP), Ambassador to East Africa and the Middle East, however, flayed Senator Jimoh Ibrahim (Ondo South) for claiming he only received N2million for vacation enjoyment even as he challenged him to publish his bank statement for Nigerians to confirm whether he told the truth or not.
He reiterated his call on President Bola Tinubu to prevail on the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio to resign his position for illegally and boldly distributing the nation’s commonwealth to legislators on national television and for painting the legislature as the most corrupt arm of government in the country.
He also called on Nigerians to rise to the occasion and demand Akpabio’s resignation if the President or Akpabio’s colleagues fail to do so.
He lamented that while the Federal Government has been complaining of lean financial resources and begging Nigerians to be “patient” and “wait” for things to improve, Akpabio could afford to dole out money for enjoyment without any thought about workers who have been crying that their minimum wage should be increased.
“They cannot pay common living wage to Nigerian workers but Akpabio’s Freudian slip is a wake-up call for Nigerians to urgently mobilize and take back their country if the Nigeria Labour Congress fails to take action to protect and defend now impoverished Nigerian workers.
He called on the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC) and other affiliate unions to rise up and genuinely fight for a living wage for Nigerian workers.
“If Akpabio can fight for senators and Members of the House of Representatives to get so much for enjoyment, we expect the organized labour leadership to fight for improved salaries, wages and welfare packages for Nigerian workers devoid of the types of compromise associated with past workers agitations,” he said.
