By Muhammad Mamman
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) over its proposal to increase the salaries of top political and public office holders, including the President, Vice President, governors, deputies, and members of the National Assembly.
RMAFC Chairman, Mohammed Shehu, had last month defended the proposed upward review, describing current salaries as “paltry.” He revealed that President Bola Tinubu currently earns ₦1.5 million monthly—a figure unchanged since 2008—which he said was inadequate for a nation of over 200 million people.
However, in a statement issued on Sunday, SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, confirmed that the organisation had approached the Federal High Court in Abuja. The case, filed under suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/1834/2025, seeks a judicial determination on whether the proposed salary increment is unlawful, unconstitutional, and inconsistent with the rule of law.
SERAP is asking the court to declare the planned pay rise invalid, citing breaches of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and the RMAFC Act. The group is also seeking:
- An injunction restraining RMAFC, its agents, and privies from implementing any upward review of salaries for the President, Vice President, governors, deputies, and lawmakers.
- An order compelling RMAFC to instead review downward the salaries and allowances of these officials to reflect prevailing economic realities.
Oluwadare argued that curbing arbitrary salary increases for politicians would protect the wider public interest.
“Reviewing downward the salaries of the president, vice-president, governors, their deputies, and lawmakers would be entirely consistent with the Nigerian Constitution, the country’s international human rights obligations, and the current economic realities,” he said.
