By Ajani Okanlawon
The joke that is the government of Osun State got less funny on Wednesday when the Senator representing Bayelsa East, Ben Murray-Bruce, offered to donate part of his controversial wardrobe allowance to workers in the state.
Widows in his constituency have been promised the other half.
Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s inability to pay public sector workers in Osun has come under severe criticism across the country. So has the reported N8.64b purportedly budgeted as wardrobe allowance for members of the National Assembly.
In a series of tweets on Wednesday, media mogul and showbiz impresario, Murray-Bruce, began by saying the figure published in respect of the wardrobe allowance was false. Calling on the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) to publicly publish the real figures, he went on to disclose what he will do with whatever money comes his way.
According to him, he could not sit idly and watch his fellow citizens suffer because of unpaid salaries.
Check out some of his tweets below.
1-I, Ben Murray Bruce, will not sit down idly, while my fellow citizens die because salaries have not been paid.
— Ben Murray-Bruce (@benmurraybruce) June 17, 2015
2-As a first step, I am immediately donating my wardrobe allowance to unpaid workers in Osun state and widows in my Constituency.
— Ben Murray-Bruce (@benmurraybruce) June 17, 2015
3-We are starting in Osun, but we will not end there. I will do as much to help workers who’ve not been paid in other states.
— Ben Murray-Bruce (@benmurraybruce) June 17, 2015
4-I call on all my friends and followers on Twitter and Facebook to donate NON PERISHABLE food items for these our brothers in need.
— Ben Murray-Bruce (@benmurraybruce) June 17, 2015
5-As soon as my wardrobe allowance is paid, I will divide it into 2. Half will be publicly given to the NLC Chairman Osun.
— Ben Murray-Bruce (@benmurraybruce) June 17, 2015
6. The other half will be publicly given to the head of widows association in my community of Akasa.
— Ben Murray-Bruce (@benmurraybruce) June 17, 2015
