Lawmakers Entitled to N70m Cash for Elections—Doguwa

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

A member of the House of Representatives, Mr Ado Doguwa, has disclosed that lawmakers, irrespective of their political affiliation, may not be able to prosecute the 2023 general elections if efforts are not made to allocate cash to them.

Speaking after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday in Abuja, Mr Doguwa, who is the Majority Leader of the lower chamber of the National Assembly, said lawmakers were entitled to N70 million each to pay polling agents and for other election running costs.

He stressed that denying them access to “hard cash: would amount to planning to ensure their failure at the polls, which start on Saturday, February 25, for presidential and National Assembly elections.

The federal legislator informed journalists that the lower parliament mandated his ad-hoc committee on Policy, Naira Redesign and Currency Swap to interface with Mr Buhari and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on the implementation of the policy.

President Buhari addressed the nation on Thursday morning. He directed the central bank to recirculate the old N200 notes till April 10, 2023, maintaining that those with the old N500 and N1,000 banknotes to deposit them with the CBN as they ceased to be legal tender in Nigeria.

Mr Buhari explained that the policy was designed to stop vote-buying, which is threatening democracy as voters are induced with cash for votes, making elections not free and fair.

“Now that the President has issued the directive, how do we ensure that the president’s directive is being carried out on the ground?

“This is what we came to iron out today. No matter how professional a policy is, it is counterproductive if it induces suffering in Nigerians,” Mr Doguwa told newsmen after the meeting today.

Present at the meeting with the President were the CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele; the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha; and the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr Usman Alkali Baba; among others.