Vice-President
Yemi Osinbajo on Thursday said the decision by President Muhammadu Buhari to
take only half of his salary was what made him (the Vice-President) to do same.
He said he
also failed in his attempt to convince Buhari to donate the half salary he
rejected to him (Osinbajo).
Osinbajo
said this at the public presentation of a book, “Making Steady, Sustainable
Progress for Nigeria’s Peace and Prosperity” at the old Banquet Hall of the
Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He spoke about the President’s
frugality, saying he does not believe in amassing wealth at the detriment of
those he is leading.
Osinbajo
said, “Some things have not been included in the book and I might just supply
some of that. One of such things is the exemplary frugality, the honesty and
humility, and sense of humour of Mr. President.
“That
frugality can sometimes be a problem. As you know, Mr. President decided that
since government provides accommodation, food and transportation for the
President and the Vice-President, we didn’t need a full salary.
“Now, how
much is this salary by the way? It is public knowledge and I think it is N1,
750,000.00 or so, which is under N2m. He said he would take only half of his
salary and so I had no choice but also to take half of my own salary.
“Unfortunately,
Mr. President turned down my request, to give the other half to a worthy cause
– his Vice-President. He didn’t consider me a more worthy cause to give half of
his salary!
“In a
country where politicians sometimes want to be as wealthy as Dangote, it is
refreshing to have a President who most people won’t even dare to discuss any
private benefit on a project with let alone a bribe or a kick-back.”
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