Former governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, hinted yesterday that governors earn more than Senators.
Obi, who was guest speaker at a dialogue organised by Ripples Centre for Data and Investigative Journalism in Lagos dropped the hint in his speech. He told the audience that if he revealed how much a Nigerian governor earns, the surprise would be far more than what trailed reports of the N13.5 million ‘running cost’ of senators.
“None of you knows what a governor or even a local government chairman earns. Quote me anywhere, if you know you won’t be here. It is something you can’t imagine. You just know the one of senators and you are shouting, but, what if you know that of the governors?
“America’s GDP is way above Nigeria’s but an American senator earns $174,000 (about N50 million) a year and you can imagine what his Nigerian counterpart earns in a month.
“In America, governors earn according to their state. The governor of California is the highest paid in America and he earns $192, 000.
“The smallest state earns $70, 000. But, in Nigeria, I can tell you, because I’ve been there, the cost of just keeping convoys alone is in millions.
“And, when people ask me ‘why am I saying these things?’ I tell them that even if we made mistakes yesterday, can’t we correct it today?”
Source : Sun
