RIGHTS GROUP WANTS SECURITY VOTES ABOLISHED

Not satisfied with what it called cosmetic approach by President Umaru Musa Yar’adua to address the problems associated with the ongoing global financial meltdown by announcing the decision of the Federal Government to initiate moves to cut down on the huge allowances and salaries of political office holders in the country, the HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS’ ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA, HURIWA, a development focused non-Governmental Organization has on Sunday called for the immediate and transparent abolition of security votes currently in use by the President, Governors and Deputy Governors in the thirty six States of the Federation.

Specifically, President Umaru Musa Yar’adua had in a letter entitled ‘’need to review certain political, public and judicial office holders salaries and allowances, amendment Act 2008’’ and addressed to the chairman of the Revenue Mobilization and Allocation and Fiscal Commission, noted that critical evaluation of the impact of crises on our domestic economy shows that declining oil sales and shrinking foreign direct investment flows are threats to our ambitious development programme. The current situation can only be mitigated through a responsive review of current costs to maintain the momentum of our development. Accordingly, in my opinion, it would be practically impossible and unrealistic for us to continue to implement the current provisions of the said Act. Indeed it would amount to insensitivity on our part to continue to implement the Act under the circumstances.’’

But the Rights Group in a statement endorsed by its National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko faulted what it called the current half measures been adopted by the current Federal administration in addressing the issue of outrageous and offensive massive wage bills spent on political office holders in the Country and advocated the immediate, verifiable and comprehensive abolition of security votes whereby the chief executives of the thirty six states and their Deputies and the President and his vice enjoy unfettered access to huge resources dedicated exclusively for what is called ‘security votes’ even when huge amounts are included and released to the ministry of Defence, the police and other Para-military and security agencies in the country every fiscal year.

HURIWA stated that the reduction in the percentage of salaries and allowances paid to political office holders is insignificant and will not do anything positive to address the problems of Nigeria’s underdevelopment but insisted that the immediate abolition of the existence of security votes which accounts for the spending of billions of taxpayers’ funds by the various chief executive of the Federal administration and the State Governments is one sure way of permanently introducing transparency and the principle of the rule of law in the governance of Nigeria. The Rights Group stated that it is the greatest act of insensitivity on the part of the Federal and State governments that millions of Nigerians do not have access to the basic socio-economic infrastructural facilities whereas the Chief Executives of the executive arm of Government at all levels are swimming in obscene wealth in the name of security votes.

Citing section 1[1] of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which provides that this constitution is supreme and its provisions SHALL have binding force on all authorities and persons throughout the federal republic of Nigeria, the Rights Group asserted that since security votes are unconstitutional and not backed up by any validly passed laws or statutory provisions in the country, the continuous use of security votes by all the affected public office holders in the federation is illegal and the existence of this security votes according to HURIWA is the cause of the massive corruption in the country, and since section 15[5] of the 1999 constitution states emphatically that the State SHALL abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power, it is high time that the continuous existence of security votes in the country is abolished and political offices should be seen not as money spinning ventures but rather vocation and call to selfless service to humanity and to motherland.