Nigeria’s President Receives Some Ridiculous Allowances

Despite Nigeria’s inflated economy and $33 billion foreign loans, the president of the country and some politicians, especially members of the National Assembly, still enjoy some outrageous allowances.

Although these were empowered by Section 32(d) of Part 1 of the Third Schedule of the Constitution, which was established to determine the appropriate revenue for political officeholders, there has been a request to reduce some of these expenses.

This is because apart from the official monthly salary of Nigeria’s President, about N1,171,568, hardship allowance of N146,446 and consistency allowance of N732,230, President Muhammadu Buhari is still entitled to 18 other allowances.

These allowances, according to the salary breakdown made by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, are personal assistant allowance, constituency, vehicle fuelling/maintenance, domestic staff, entertainment, recess, newspaper/periodicals, utilities, houses maintenance, security, special assistant, furniture, wardrobe, duty tour, accommodation, estacode, and medical allowances.

On the other hand, the vice-president of Nigeria, Yemi Osinbajo, gets over N1 million monthly and over N12 million annually. He is also entitled to a monthly hardship payment of N126,315 and a consistency allowance of N631,577.

Here is a  breakdown of some of the allowances

Personal Assistant Allowance

A personal assistant is required to function efficiently. The president’s personal assistant receives a quarter (25%) of his base salary, which amounts to N3,000,000.

Constituency Allowance

This stipend covers the President’s daily expenses. This is equivalent to 250% of the entire yearly pay of N732,000 each month and over N8.7 million per year.

Vehicle and Maintenance Allowance

He is entitled to 75% of his yearly base salary, which is N9 million, for vehicles and maintenance.

Leave Allowance

This stipend allows the president to take some time off from his duties. He is entitled to a leave allowance of 10% of his base salary, which amounts to N351,470.50.

Estacode Allowance

The estacode allowance covers the president’s travel expenditures. The president is the sole decider of the amount provided for this allowance.

Duty Tour Allowance

The objective of this grant is to cover the cost of the president’s official travels, which are at his discretion.

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