Do you remember Honorable Alhassan Ado Doguwa, the Chief Whip of the Nigerian House of Representatives from Kano State, who some time ago gleefully showed off his harem on the floor of the Nigerian parliament and in front of blinking media cameras?
I am sure you do. Although he is not presently in the news (thanks to the pandemic) his rare moment of fame still echoes. It also provides a perfect anchor that illustrates the fate of a nation and its people.
Let’s assume that Hon Doguwa takes home a monthly salary of N1m after taxes and other deductions. We are here assuming the upper limit of monthly salaries of members of the House of Representatives, according to Punch reports published in 2018. This does not include “Running Expenses” which are supposed to take care of staff salaries, office expenses, travel, etc., for each member.
With a nuclear household size of 32 (27 children + 4 wives & 1 man), income per head (capita) of his family would be N31,250 monthly or N1,041 daily. This sum will cover all basic recurrent needs like food, shelter, clothing, transportation, entertainment, healthcare, etc.
In essence, each member of the “powerful” Doguwa family lives on approximately N1000 or less than $3 daily! This is only marginally better than the global poverty benchmark of $1 per day for the poorest humans on the planet.
Put differently, even on a reasonably “hefty” salary (by Nigerian standards), afforded by his privileged position, Hon Doguwa would only manage to preside over a poor home – if he lives strictly within his pay!
This would not be because he is not well paid; It would be simply because he has too many mouths to feed. And that itself is because he has chosen to keep himself perpetually busy in “the other room.” What a sad choice for an otherwisee highly articulate gentleman.
To escape this dire situation, Hon Doguwa will have to earn more money from “other sources.” For a member of the Nigerian parliament who is too proud to do anything else but live off the state, the closest source of “additional” income is his “running expense” allowances, running into 8-12 million Naira monthly.
Actually, this is not meant for his family upkeep. It is meant for oiling the engines of parliamentary support offices in Abuja and in his constituency back home – which is the only way he can effectively do his work. It is meant to hire aides and cover official operational expenses. It is supposed to trickle down to several other families whose members provide goods and services to Hon Doguwa down the value chain.
In truth, we all know much of this money trickles to nowhere. We know that I Nigeria “running expense allowances” is another name for slush funds to keep honorable members and distinguished senators happy and cooperative. And to prepare for future elections. Otherwise, where in the world does a person earn 8 to 12 times his salary as allowances – if not only in Nigeria?
So, Hon Doguwa and his colleagues are “lucky” to have their straws dipped in and sipping straight from the Nigerian honey pot. Trouble is, their rendezvous has an expiry date. It lasts only four years, after which they must renew their mandate to keep sipping or quickly fall below the poverty line like most of us.
Now, you begin to understand why elections in Nigeria are matters of life and death. Very few Nigerians, if any, can legitimately and consistently earn anything close to the salaries and allowances we pay our public officials – in a private capacity. Not to talk of other funds they routinely have access to from the Commonwealth using their privileged positions.
Honorable Doguwa is a classic example of a troubled Nigerian elite – smart enough to analyze and understand the world around him, but not smart enough to understand and tame the little monkey between his legs, or to walk away from the anachronistic practices of his ancestors. In desperation, he turns to the Nigerian state which he must control at all costs to fund his unfortunate lifestyle.
Hon Doguwa shares this dubious honor with the former Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido, a highly cerebral and outspoken man with a rare and accurate understanding of the problems of the North and Nigeria. Yet the erstwhile Emir Sanusi, at close to 60, recently took a new wife (younger than some of his own children) to add to his harem.
If this could happen to brilliant and educated men like Sanusi and Doguwa, imagine the fate of millions of others who are not so fortunate in terms of education, exposure and privilege. These are the senior Almajirai. They have neither clues nor tools with which to navigate the modern world. While waiting to expire, they take solace in endlessly sleeping with their wives. The resulting destitutes further complicate their lives of penury and the fortunes of a country which now ranks among the poorest on the planet.
Victor Anazonwu, a journalist, communication consultant and author, writes from Lagos.
