By Senator Bala Ibn Na’Allah has revealed that many lawmakers in Nigeria leave the National Assembly worse off financially than when they entered. Na’Allah, who once represented Kebbi South and served as deputy majority leader in the 8th Senate, made this disclosure during an interview on Trust TV’s ’30 Minutes’.
Na’Allah, who lost his re-election bid in 2023 to Garba Maidoki, challenged the popular belief that politics is a sure route to personal wealth. “Some of them ventured into the National Assembly believing that it is a place to make money, only to discover that they are going to end up poorer,” he said.
He went further, asking the show’s host, Mannir, to investigate the financial state of public officials. “Go back to your constituency or anywhere you know of people occupying public office… tell me one Senator or one member of the House of Representatives who had nothing to do before he joined politics and who, after leaving politics after one year, can afford even the children’s school fee,” he challenged.
When the host argued that many lawmakers don’t appear to struggle financially, Na’Allah insisted appearances are deceiving. “That is how you see it and that is why I am giving you this assignment,” he said. “I hope by the time you finish that assignment, you will come back on this forum and tell Nigerians what your results have shown.”
He also clarified that he wasn’t trying to defend the legislature but was simply stating the reality as he experienced it. “The perception that the public has is completely at variance with the reality of what is happening there,” he added.
According to Na’Allah, many lawmakers hold on to their seats not because they enjoy being ordinary senators but because they hope for bigger roles in government. “You are hoping that tomorrow I might be the Senate President, I might be this. That may be the reason,” he said.
