As the 8th Senate clocks one year on June 9, a report shows that 53 out of 103 senators spent the last one year without sponsoring any bill of their own.The number is a sharp contrast from 50 senators who have sponsored at least one bill in the legislative body. Recall that the 8th Senate was inaugurated on June 9, 2015.The report, released by a non-governmental organisation, Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), focused on Bill Charts in the upper legislative chamber.
Consequently, the 53 federal lawmakers who have not sponsored bills in the 8th Senate represent 51 percent, as against 49 percent who sponsored bill(s) in the period under review.
BDSUNDAY reports that although Section 48 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) states that the Senate shall consist of 109 members, six senatorial districts are still vacant because the Independent National Electoral Election (INEC) is yet to conclude elections in Rivers, Kogi, Anambra and Imo States, respectively.
Drawn from PDP and APC, the list of legislators yet to sponsor any bill includes ranking and new senators.
Leading the pack are former Senate President and longest-serving senator in the Fourth Republic, David Mark (PDP, Benue South); George Akume (APC, Benue North West); Yele Omogunwa (PDP, Ondo South), Sola Adeyeye (APC, Osun Central), Monsurat Sunmonu (APC, Oyo Central) and Adesoji Akanbi (APC, Oyo South).
Others are: Enyinaya Abaribe (PDP, Abia South), Samuel Anyanwu (PDP, Imo East), Godswill Akpabio (PDP, Akwa-Ibom North West), Nelson Effiong (PDP, Akwa-Ibom South, Foster Ogola (PDP, Bayelsa West), John Enoh (PDP, Cross River Central), Gershom Bassey (PDP, Cross River South), James Manager (PDP, Delta South), Clifford Ordia (PDP, Edo Central), Lanre Tejuoso (APC, Ogun Central), Gbolahan Dada (APC, Ogun West), Ahmed Ogembe (PDP, Kogi Central), Phillip Gyunka (PDP, Nasarawa North), Suleiman Adokwe (PDP, Nasarawa South), Abdullahi Adamu (APC, Nasarawa West), Aliyu Abdullahi (APC, Niger North), Garba Mohammed (APC, Niger South), Jeremiah Useni (PDP, Plateau South East), Jonah Jang (PDP, Plateau North).
Also on the list are: Abdul Aziz Nyako (APC, Adamawa Central), Binta Garba (APC, Adamawa North), Ahmad Abubakar (APC, Adamawa South), Ali Wakili (APC, Bauchi South), Abubakar Kyari (APC, Borno North), Danjuma Goje (Gombe Central), Bayero Nafada (APC, Gombe North), Yusuf Susuf (APC, Taraba Central) Danladi Abubakar (PDP, Taraba North), Emmanuel Bwacha (PDP, Taraba South), Bukar Abba Ibrahim (APC, Yobe East), Ahmad Lawan (APC, Yobe North), Mohammed Hassan (PDP, Yobe South), Mohammed Sabo (APC, Jigawa South West), Muhammad Shitu (APC, North East), Abdullahi Gumel (APC, Jigawa North West), Dajuma La’ah (PDP, Kaduna South), Suleiman Hunkuyi (APC, Kaduna North), Rabiu Kwankwaso (APC, Kano Central), Abu Ibrahim (APC, Katsina South), Mustapha Bukar (APC, Katsina North), Adamu Aliero (APC, Kebbi Central), Yahaya Abdullahi (APC, Kebbi North), Ibrahim Abdullahi (APC, Sokoto South), Kabir Marafa (APC, Zamfara Central) and Ahmad Sani (APC, Zamfara West).
The remaining two senators, Senate President Bukola Saraki and his deputy Ike Ekweremadu, are presiding officers.
A report in The Economist of London magazine showed that Nigerian legislators are better paid than their British, American or any other counterparts as a factor of GDP per capita.
According to the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) which fixes salaries and allowances for officials of the three arms of government, allowances that accrue to legislators include accommodation, under which each senator gets N4 million. As vehicle loan, each senator takes N8 million; furniture allowance N6 million; severance gratuity for each senator is N6.09 million. Like the vehicle loan, severance gratuities are paid only once in four years. Other annual allowances include those for motor vehicle fuelling and maintenance for which senators are entitled to N1.52 million each. For constituency, they get N5 million and N1.519 million for domestic staff allowance.
Senators also receive allowance for personal assistants of N506,600 each; entertainment allowance of N607,920 and recess allowance of N202,640 each.
Senators get N607,920 for utilities as against N397,042; newspaper/periodicals, N303,960; house maintenance allowance for senators is N101,320; wardrobe allowance of N506,600.
As of Thursday June 2, 2016, a total of 291 bills have been deliberated upon so far.
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