Lagos plans to stop Tinubu, other former governors’ pensions
The Governor of Lagos State, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has proposed to end the payment of pension and other entitlements to former governors of the state and their deputies, but the move has not received the backing of other state governors in the country.
Sanwo-Olu spoke on the move on Tuesday while presenting the 2021 budget estimates to the State House of Assembly for approval.
The abolition of pensions will affect former governors, Bola Tinubu, Babatunde Fashola and Akinwumi Ambode, as well as their deputies.
The governor said the move was to keep the cost of governance low and to signal selflessness in public service.
The Public Office Holder (Payment of Pension) Law No. 11 official Gazette of Lagos State are entitled to a house each in any location of their choice in Lagos and Abuja.
Section 2 states, “One residential house each for the governor and the deputy governor at any location of their choice in Lagos state and one residential house in the Federal Capital Territory for the governor on two consecutive terms”.
The state government built houses for former governors of the state in Lagos and Abuja in line with the law.
A former governor is also entitled to six new cars every three years, 100 percent of the basic salary of the serving governor (778,296), utility allowance which is 20 percent of the salary (1.5m) and car maintenance allowance which is 30 percent of the annual basic salary (N2.3m).
Other benefits include entertainment allowance which is 10 percent of the basic salary (N778,296), and a personal assistant who will earn 25 percent of the governor’s annual basic salary (N1.9m).
The law adds that a former governor is entitled to domestic workers comprising a cook, a steward, a gardener and others whose appointments are pensionable.
A former governor is also entitled to eight policemen and two operatives of the Department of State Service for life, according to the Lagos law.
Advocacy group, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has described as a welcome development the move by Sanwo-Olu to scrap the state law which places all former governors and deputy governors of the state on pension for life.