Tinubu, Others Set for Salary Increase as RMAFC Completes Review

The Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has completed the upward review of the salaries and allowances of President Bola Tinubu and other political, public and judicial office holders.

POLITICS NIGERIA reports that the recommendations will now receive attention from the appropriate authorities.

RMAFC Chairman, Mohammed Bello Shehu, disclosed this during an interactive session with members of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) in Lagos, where he reviewed the commission’s activities and reforms from 2023 to date.

Shehu said the commission had completed the review of remuneration for political and public office holders as part of its constitutional responsibility to advise the government on appropriate remuneration for certain public officials.

He explained that the exercise formed part of wider reforms being implemented by the commission to strengthen Nigeria’s fiscal system and ensure that remuneration reflects prevailing realities.

The RMAFC chairman also confirmed that the review of remuneration for judicial office holders had already been concluded, resulting in the enactment of the Judicial Office Holders (Salaries and Allowances) Act, 2025.

He said the review covering executive and legislative office holders had also reached an advanced stage, adding that an executive bill on the Political and Public Office Holders (Salaries and Allowances) Act, 2026, was expected to be forwarded to the National Assembly.

Shehu, however, stressed that any increase in remuneration must be accompanied by greater accountability and improved performance by public officials.

He said improved salaries should ultimately translate into better service delivery and stronger commitment to the responsibilities attached to public offices.

The development comes months after President Tinubu announced that he would donate his salaries earned since assuming office in May 2023 to support wounded soldiers and families of military personnel who died in service.

Tinubu made the announcement in March 2026 while marking his 74th birthday. He directed the Accountant-General of the Federation to establish a special account for the initiative.

“What I need to do on your behalf is to announce a special account to be created today from all the salaries that I’ve earned,” Tinubu said at the time.

“The Accountant General should establish an account to fund those men and women who stand in harm’s way, who have lost husbands and wives,” he added.

The most recent publicly available RMAFC figures cited at the time put the President’s monthly basic salary at N1,171,568.20, translating to N14,058,820 annually. However, the President’s total remuneration includes statutory allowances and other benefits.

Beyond remuneration, Shehu said RMAFC had made significant progress in monitoring national revenue, particularly in the oil and gas sector, where it had intensified efforts to ensure accurate application of the 13 per cent derivation principle.

He said the commission had used verification exercises, geospatial mapping and collaboration with relevant agencies to resolve longstanding disputes over the attribution of oil wells.

One of the major interventions, according to him, involved the reallocation of 17 oil wells from Imo State to Rivers State in accordance with a Supreme Court judgment.

He added that similar interventions had been carried out in Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Imo and Anambra states, while improved reporting of gas production had enabled Enugu and Kogi states to benefit from derivation revenues.

Shehu said RMAFC had strengthened its collaboration with agencies including the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, National Boundary Commission and the Office of the Surveyor-General of the Federation.

He said the partnerships were aimed at improving revenue monitoring, data accuracy and compliance across the country.

The commission, he added, was also engaging the Ministry of Defence on crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism and other factors contributing to production losses and declining government revenue.

Shehu disclosed that RMAFC was also exploring new revenue opportunities outside the petroleum sector through partnerships with the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria and the National Space Research and Development Agency.

According to him, satellite and geospatial technologies could help the government identify additional revenue sources and improve the monitoring of economic activities.

The RMAFC chairman also described the review of Nigeria’s revenue allocation formula as one of the commission’s most important assignments.

He said the exercise followed extensive consultations with the Federal Government, state governments, local governments, technical stakeholders and other relevant groups across the country.

According to him, the commission considered fiscal responsibilities, revenue trends and practices in other federal systems before producing a harmonised report and legislative proposals for transmission to the appropriate authorities.

He said the objective was to create a more equitable and sustainable revenue-sharing system that would take into account Nigeria’s current economic and governance realities.

The commission also highlighted improvements in its internal infrastructure, including the rehabilitation of key facilities, strengthened security systems and the ongoing renovation of its headquarters.

Shehu said staff welfare had equally received attention through improved healthcare services, training and capacity-building programmes designed to improve the technical expertise of RMAFC personnel.

The chairman said the meeting with the Nigerian Guild of Editors was part of the commission’s efforts to improve transparency and ensure that Nigerians had a clearer understanding of its constitutional responsibilities.