By M.O. Idam
AN OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT BOLA AHMED TINUBU
With the deepest of malaise, as a severely marginalized citizen, I write cheerlessly, in reaction to the viral news which claims that the administration of Mr. President is considering a proposal by the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) to increase the salary of his political appointees.
Mr. President must not only ignore such a proposal by the RMAFC as being thoughtless if not insensible or self-engineered, to say the least — coming at a time that Nigerians are yearning for a drastic reduction in the cost of governance. Mr. President should instead treat the proposal as a subversive or traitorous acts by mischievous elements within his administration to de market his already blurry image before Nigerians.
Perhaps, someone should remind Mr. President that members of the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) recently suspended their seven-day warning strike against poor salaries and welfare, following a yet to be fulfilled promises made by the Federal Government.
The NANNM have had to struggle for better welfare just like a sea of other essential Federal Government workers out there who have at different times battled without success, for an upgrade in their meagre wage.
Mr. President may need to prioritize measures required in arresting the persistent agitations by the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD)—to prevent Nigerian doctors from fleeing Nigeria in an exodus, for a greener welfare, other than consider an increase in the salary of appointees who are extremely dispensable.
Mr. President should remember ASUU, NLC and TUC who constantly issue threats of an indefinite strike as a result of several unfulfilled promises and undertakings by the Federal Government.
Curiously, I seek to know if these essential service deliverers are in the estimation of RMAFC giving way for political appointees who already live in luxury and affluence off public funds, to have their ostentatious lifestyle adjusted upward?
Mr. President should refrain from or resist every attempt to have such or similar other self-serving proposals by RMAFC approved, under any guise. HE should consider same as being engineered by self-centred actors in government who are disconnected from Nigeria’s realities.
Political appointment must remain a call to service and not a means to material possession. Those interested in wealth accumulation should give up their appointment for those willing to serve gratuitously.
M.O.Idam
It’s unfair that politicians keep getting pay rises while essential workers like nurses, who risk their lives daily, are left struggling with poor salaries and broken promises.