Lagos House of Assembly has approved 50 per cent reduction from the pension benefits of former governors and other officials in the state.

The assembly made the new changes at the plenary on Thursday.

A statement signed by Eromosele Ebhomele, spokesman to the Speaker of the House, stated that the House Committee on Establishment submitted a report to the House of Assembly which reviews and recommends that the numbers of vehicles given should be reduced.

The committee report also expunged the provision of houses in Abuja and Lagos for former governors as stipulated in an earlier law operated by the state.

The Speaker of the House, Mudashiru Obasa, suggested that the former governors should get two vehicles instead of three as recommended by the committee.

He also mentioned that the amended bill provided that the cars should be changed every four years instead of the three years.

While, some lawmakers at plenary argued that the pension should be reviewed to 75 per cent, some argued that the pension benefits should remain the same.

Mr Obasa agreed with the report by the committee that there should be 50 per cent reduction,

The speaker noted that it was necessary to also secure the lives of the former office holders.

“By virtue of my office, I have seen former speakers who we just had to intervene in their lives because of the situations they found themselves outside office. We have also seen former governors in a very bad situation,” he said.

Mr Obasa noted the arguments of his colleagues that the projected downward review of the pension for the former governors and others could also be affected by inflation and other economic considerations, but he mentioned that the legislators must meet the wishes of the people, one of which is a cut in the cost of governance.

“There is no argument, we must realise that this is democracy and it is all about the people. We are here because of the people. When we represent people, it is good for us to listen to them as well.

“We must realise that we would always go back to the people for support. So when we hearken to their agitations and reduce what existed, it shows that we listen,” Mr Obasa said.

Other lawmakers added that the speaker’s suggestion for further reduction of the number of cars was right because “as you age, your needs continue to decrease.”