Monrovia — Nimba County District #7 Representative Musa Hansan Bility has shown strong support for the reduction of lawmakers' salary as proposed by Montserrado County Senator Darious Dillon in a Bill submitted to the Liberian Senate titled, "An Act Fixing the Monthly Remuneration of the Legislature.
In a social media post, Rep. Bility noted, "I have followed very carefully the ongoing debate in the Liberian Senate over the bill introduced by Montserrado County Senator, Abraham Darius Dillon, titled "An Act Fixing the Monthly Remuneration of the Legislature," which seeks to reduce the monthly salaries of lawmakers to Five Thousand United States Dollars."
Rep. Bility who has consistently disagreed with Dillon on other issues, furthered, "I want to state, without any ambiguity, that I stand 100% in support of this bill.
He said, "At a time when our people are struggling to access basic healthcare, quality education, and decent public services, it is morally indefensible for their elected representatives to continue to preside over a wage structure that is generous to officials and cruel to citizens. Senator Dillon's initiative is a bold step toward discipline, moderation, and accountability in the use of public resources, and I commend him for his consistency and courage over the years in this matter."
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"However, this reform cannot stop at the Legislature. The Liberian people are not only questioning lawmakers' pay. They are questioning the entire architecture of excessive remuneration for top public officials. If we cut only our side while leaving executive officials with larger, more hidden packages, we will not have achieved true equity or discipline in our compensation system," the Nimba County lawmaker added.
Bility further noted, "I am therefore calling for an amendment to Dillon's bill that ensures that no member of the Executive Branch, including the President, the Vice President, and principal and deputy heads of all Ministries, Agencies, Commissions, and SOEs, shall earn more than Five Thousand United States Dollars per month from public resources. Additionally, the benefits of these officials also need to be reduced. Anything less than this would be partial and incomplete."
He added that one of the deepest wounds in our democracy is the perception that government is a machine designed to enrich public officials adding, "Capping salaries of all top public officials will help save the country significant resources, free up millions of dollars that can be redirected to hospitals, schools, medicines, teacher pay, and infrastructure, promote discipline in public spending, and send a clear message that leadership begins with sacrifice, not privilege. When the people see their leaders' taking cuts, it becomes easier to ask them to tighten their belts."
He said applying the same benchmark across the Executive Branch and standardizing salaries at a reasonable level will help restore public trust and confidence. "And show that we, as leaders, are prepared to live within limits. It will also create fairness across branches, as it is unfair for one branch to reduce its pay while another continues to enjoy higher, unregulated packages. A standard ceiling on remuneration demonstrates that no position in government is above sacrifice in the national interest."
Bility argued that under the Constitution, appropriation and control of the national budget lie with the Legislature saying, "That power is meaningless if we are afraid to regulate our own pay and that of other senior officials who depend on the public purse. Now that Senator Dillon's bill is formally before the Senate, there is no excuse. The matter is no longer about talk shows and public debates. It is on the table as a bill. I therefore pledge my full support in the House of Representatives for Senator Dillon's bill and strongly suggest that the reduction in salaries of top officials of the Executive Branch be included in the bill. When this bill is transmitted from the Senate to the House, I will vote for it and advocate for its speedy passage."
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"To my colleagues in both Houses, this is not about comfort, nor is it about popularity. It is about justice and responsibility. History will remember whether we used our time in office to protect our personal allowances or to reset Liberia on a path of fairness and discipline," he noted.
He reminded his colleagues that the Liberian people are watching noting, "They have endured too much hardship, while a small group of officials live far above the realities of ordinary citizens. We cannot continue this way and still claim to be serious about change."
