BY CLIFFORD NDUJIHE, DEPUTY POLITICAL EDITOR
Senator Omololu Meroyi, chairman of the Senators’ Forum (South-West), was in the Senate between 1999 to 2003 representing Ondo South. In this interview with Vanguard, after a meeting of the Forum in Lagos, he spoke on the rising cost of governance, jumbo pay for lawmakers, how to move the country forward and why serving and non-serving senators are congregating. Excerpts:
On why Senators could not address the country’s problems in the past
Two things are responsible. When we came in 1999, democracy was at its infancy. Some of us bore the brunt and made sacrifices to get things started. Two, there was the issue of resource availablility to meet competing needs. One thought it was necessary to prioritise. With the advantage of insight, one can say now that the Local Governments have been turned into extensions of state government offices, which are making a lot of people poorer in the grassroots. Revenues that should accrue to local governments are being used to gallivant about and other corrupt practices instead of offering services at the local governments.
On true federalism
What we have is the issue of over-centralisation or unitary approach. The way we are practicing our federalism is far from true federalism. Look at the power supply problem. The way out is to decentralise; open up the sector and let there be as many people as can generate and distribute electricity such that our people can work efficiently. If we ensure power supply, it will create jobs.
On rising cost of governance in the country and jumbo pay for lawmakers
One has to be realistic. The society should provide for its lawmakers but it has to be appropriate, not to improverish the society the lawmakers are meant to serve. My allowances as a senator in 1999 was N767,155.96 in six months. According to my pay slip of December 17, 1999, entertainment allowance for six months was N120,000; Telephone, N180,000; Water/electricity, N120,000; Outstanding works on Apo Residential blocks, N91,743.12 and vehicle, N255,412.84, totalling N767,155.96.
I am not in the Senate now but I think there is no fantastic change in the real salary. What I imagine they are doing is that certain funds for constituency are being converted, which makes the pay a very a huge amount of money.
On the way out
Lawmakers are Nigerians; you cannot create an elitist parliament that cannot listen to the majority of Nigerians. You have to come back to the people after serving and you have to be concerned about how to make Nigeria better for the people and this requires funds for development.
Advice to President Goodluck Jonathan
The most primary problem is economic. Let’s provide amenities that will improve the economy. If you provide power and create jobs, the backlash will alleviate poverty and impact on many other things -education, agriculture, etc. He needs people, who can drive the economy. That is where he should concentrate his attention.
The objective of the Senators ‘ forum
The meeting, which is coming at the wake of the successful transition of democratic government in our nation provides us another opportunity as major stakeholders in the polity to evaluate the process before, during and after the 2011 elections. Our senators’ forum as an institution of serving and non-serving senators is made up of cream de-la-cream in the nation and represents the vanguard of public interest.
Why the forum is just beginning
Earlier efforts to bring us together under an umbrella body to contribute toward enhancing good governance and deepen our democratic ethos did not succeed until 2005 when Senator Alex Kadiri with support of our former presiding officer, Anyim Pius Anyim, provided an interim executive and a draft constitution. By January of 2011, however, the formal processes of registration as a non-governmental and non-partisan body was concluded and an election of officials to carry out the functions provided in the constitution put in place.
Wisdom behind gathering
I would like to commend the wisdom behind the establishment of the forum, which now offers the nation the opportunity to utilise the know how of all former members of the hallowed chamber. It is an opportunity to harness the wealth of experience of serving and non-serving senators and channel such ideas through diverse means back to the leadership so as to promote the well-being of our people.
As patriots, the forum is another call to serve our fatherland, to strengthen the law making institution and provide advice and where there is need be a critic of programmes and policies that will take Nigeria to our Promised Land.
Why they are coming together
The Senators forum cannot afford to be sectional or partisan as the collective interest of Nigeria surpasses any group or sectional interest. In the same breadth, we owe it as a sacred duty to express views and correct situation that might arise in the course of event that may adversely affect our nation or that may portend evil to our people. We also know that after leaving the Senate.
Recent events in Nigeria require that we come together as stakeholders to chat together with those in authority a direction for uniting the country and building bonds of friendship. The incessant crisis in the Niger Delta, the continued mayhem in Jos, Bauchi and Kano and the threat posed by Boko Haram in North-East indicate that our nation is under serious threat of insecurity. Our collective wisdom is required to stem these crises from spreading to other parts of the country especially South-West and in addition offer the national leadership our views on moving the nation forward.
How they hoped to achieve results
As men of valour, we will reach out to our President and Commander in Chief, the governors of our states and all those in authority on how to build an economically powerful Nigeria. Our National Assembly, which is our primary constituency needs our support to enlighten the public from time to time and help sustain the parliament of our dream with high esteem and integrity as its hallmark.
It is only in an atmosphere of peaceful co-existence that the much avowed transformation of Nigeria by the President can be realised. Some argue that the insecurity we are experiencing is due to the failure of our economic plans and polices that have created a large pull of unemployed youths across the length and breadth of the country. The economic fortune of Nigeria must be transformed and we cannot afford to sit on the fence.
Methinks that our forum, which is non-partisan and non-governmental should take up the challenge to advocate amid the various parties/groups or interest contending. We all witnessed the national conference of the Obasanjo-led administration and how that opportunity to strengthen our nation derailed in view of the Third Term agenda. We want to provide the nucleus of those to engineer a new platform for the discussion on way forward for Nigeria. Nigeria needs us now more then ever before.
vanguardngr.com/2011/06/lawmakers%e2%80%99-jumbo-pay-i-earned-n767000-in-six-months-senator-meroyi/
Senator Omololu Meroyi, chairman of the Senators’ Forum (South-West), was in the Senate between 1999 to 2003 representing Ondo South. In this interview with Vanguard, after a meeting of the Forum in Lagos, he spoke on the rising cost of governance, jumbo pay for lawmakers, how to move the country forward and why serving and non-serving senators are congregating. Excerpts:
On why Senators could not address the country’s problems in the past
Two things are responsible. When we came in 1999, democracy was at its infancy. Some of us bore the brunt and made sacrifices to get things started. Two, there was the issue of resource availablility to meet competing needs. One thought it was necessary to prioritise. With the advantage of insight, one can say now that the Local Governments have been turned into extensions of state government offices, which are making a lot of people poorer in the grassroots. Revenues that should accrue to local governments are being used to gallivant about and other corrupt practices instead of offering services at the local governments.
On true federalism
What we have is the issue of over-centralisation or unitary approach. The way we are practicing our federalism is far from true federalism. Look at the power supply problem. The way out is to decentralise; open up the sector and let there be as many people as can generate and distribute electricity such that our people can work efficiently. If we ensure power supply, it will create jobs.
On rising cost of governance in the country and jumbo pay for lawmakers
One has to be realistic. The society should provide for its lawmakers but it has to be appropriate, not to improverish the society the lawmakers are meant to serve. My allowances as a senator in 1999 was N767,155.96 in six months. According to my pay slip of December 17, 1999, entertainment allowance for six months was N120,000; Telephone, N180,000; Water/electricity, N120,000; Outstanding works on Apo Residential blocks, N91,743.12 and vehicle, N255,412.84, totalling N767,155.96.
I am not in the Senate now but I think there is no fantastic change in the real salary. What I imagine they are doing is that certain funds for constituency are being converted, which makes the pay a very a huge amount of money.
On the way out
Lawmakers are Nigerians; you cannot create an elitist parliament that cannot listen to the majority of Nigerians. You have to come back to the people after serving and you have to be concerned about how to make Nigeria better for the people and this requires funds for development.
Advice to President Goodluck Jonathan
The most primary problem is economic. Let’s provide amenities that will improve the economy. If you provide power and create jobs, the backlash will alleviate poverty and impact on many other things -education, agriculture, etc. He needs people, who can drive the economy. That is where he should concentrate his attention.
The objective of the Senators ‘ forum
The meeting, which is coming at the wake of the successful transition of democratic government in our nation provides us another opportunity as major stakeholders in the polity to evaluate the process before, during and after the 2011 elections. Our senators’ forum as an institution of serving and non-serving senators is made up of cream de-la-cream in the nation and represents the vanguard of public interest.
Why the forum is just beginning
Earlier efforts to bring us together under an umbrella body to contribute toward enhancing good governance and deepen our democratic ethos did not succeed until 2005 when Senator Alex Kadiri with support of our former presiding officer, Anyim Pius Anyim, provided an interim executive and a draft constitution. By January of 2011, however, the formal processes of registration as a non-governmental and non-partisan body was concluded and an election of officials to carry out the functions provided in the constitution put in place.
Wisdom behind gathering
I would like to commend the wisdom behind the establishment of the forum, which now offers the nation the opportunity to utilise the know how of all former members of the hallowed chamber. It is an opportunity to harness the wealth of experience of serving and non-serving senators and channel such ideas through diverse means back to the leadership so as to promote the well-being of our people.
As patriots, the forum is another call to serve our fatherland, to strengthen the law making institution and provide advice and where there is need be a critic of programmes and policies that will take Nigeria to our Promised Land.
Why they are coming together
The Senators forum cannot afford to be sectional or partisan as the collective interest of Nigeria surpasses any group or sectional interest. In the same breadth, we owe it as a sacred duty to express views and correct situation that might arise in the course of event that may adversely affect our nation or that may portend evil to our people. We also know that after leaving the Senate.
Recent events in Nigeria require that we come together as stakeholders to chat together with those in authority a direction for uniting the country and building bonds of friendship. The incessant crisis in the Niger Delta, the continued mayhem in Jos, Bauchi and Kano and the threat posed by Boko Haram in North-East indicate that our nation is under serious threat of insecurity. Our collective wisdom is required to stem these crises from spreading to other parts of the country especially South-West and in addition offer the national leadership our views on moving the nation forward.
How they hoped to achieve results
As men of valour, we will reach out to our President and Commander in Chief, the governors of our states and all those in authority on how to build an economically powerful Nigeria. Our National Assembly, which is our primary constituency needs our support to enlighten the public from time to time and help sustain the parliament of our dream with high esteem and integrity as its hallmark.
It is only in an atmosphere of peaceful co-existence that the much avowed transformation of Nigeria by the President can be realised. Some argue that the insecurity we are experiencing is due to the failure of our economic plans and polices that have created a large pull of unemployed youths across the length and breadth of the country. The economic fortune of Nigeria must be transformed and we cannot afford to sit on the fence.
Methinks that our forum, which is non-partisan and non-governmental should take up the challenge to advocate amid the various parties/groups or interest contending. We all witnessed the national conference of the Obasanjo-led administration and how that opportunity to strengthen our nation derailed in view of the Third Term agenda. We want to provide the nucleus of those to engineer a new platform for the discussion on way forward for Nigeria. Nigeria needs us now more then ever before.
vanguardngr.com/2011/06/lawmakers%e2%80%99-jumbo-pay-i-earned-n767000-in-six-months-senator-meroyi/