No, They’re Not!

in the applicable laws of the State, which that person had earned by reason of having been first elected at the State level, from subsequently enjoying salaries, benefits, entitlements and other perquisites of office by reason of a subsequent election into any office under the Constitution at the Federal level. The National Assembly does not have any such power and any such law will be a misadventure, and a State Government will be within her rights to gladly ignore any such law and or to challenge it in court.

If for example, Richard Oma Ahonaruogho, SAN was elected into the House of Assembly of Delta State and served as the Right Honourable Mr Speaker; he completed his tenure in that behalf, he will be entitled to benefit from the law for pensions, gratuities and other-like benefits payable out of the Revenue fund of Delta State applicable to the Office of Mr Speaker. Now, the same Richard Oma Ahonaruogho SAN is now elected into the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, he will in addition to receiving his earned pension from the Delta State Government, be entitled to all his salaries, benefits and entitlements together with the perquisites of office as a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria!

Pensions and gratuities, are earned. Once there is no law preventing a person from aspiring to serve at more than one level of the three tiers of government - Federal, State and Local Government, any law made to interfere with earned pensions and gratuities, will not be a law validly made.

The cases of former Governors and Deputy Governors who have been elected into the National Assembly, should be no different. The electorates knew that they had served as Governors and Deputy Governors before electing them into the National Assembly, and they should not be unnecessary or unduly stigmatised.

Lastly, it must be remembered that Section 4(8) of the Constitution has expressly removed the powers of the Legislature to oust the jurisdiction of the courts or judicial tribunal from inquiring into the validity of any law passed by the National Assembly or by a House of Assembly, in the following terms –

“Save as otherwise provided by this Constitution, the exercise of legislative powers by the National Assembly or by a House of Assembly shall be subject to the jurisdiction of courts of law and of judicial tribunals established by law, and accordingly, the National Assembly or a House of Assembly shall not enact any law, that ousts or purports to oust the jurisdiction of a court of law or of a judicial tribunal established by law”.