FG Moves to Hike Salaries of Tinubu, Shettima, Akpabio, Others

The Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has indicated that a salary increase may be on the horizon for President Bola Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima, federal ministers, and senators.

Chairman of RMAFC, Mohammed Shehu, made this known during a press conference in Abuja on Monday, stating that the current remuneration for top government officials is outdated and unrealistic, having remained unchanged since 2008.

“You cannot pay the President of Nigeria N1.5 million monthly—leading a country of over 200 million people—and expect it to be taken seriously,” Shehu said.

He criticized the disparity in pay between the President and heads of government agencies, pointing out that some directors-general and other agency heads earn significantly more than top elected officials.

“You pay either a CBN governor or a DG ten times more than you pay the President. Or twenty times more than the Attorney-General of the Federation. That is absolutely not right,” he added.

However, the proposed move has drawn sharp criticism from the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), which described any plan to increase political office holders’ salaries as “insensitive and unjust.”

The NLC argued that it would be unfair to grant salary hikes to politicians at a time when many Nigerians are grappling with high inflation, economic hardship, and rising poverty levels.

The labour body urged the government to prioritize the welfare of ordinary citizens and address pressing socioeconomic issues before considering increases for political elites.