The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, has urged governors who are unable to meet the new N70,000 minimum wage to step down from office.
This comes in response to the Gombe State Governor, Inuwa Yahaya, who recently stated that his administration could not afford to pay the newly established national minimum wage.
Governor Yahaya, who also serves as the Chairman of the Northern Governors’ Forum, made these remarks during a meeting with labour leaders, civil society organisations, and traders associations at the Government House in Gombe.
In reaction to Governor Yahaya’s statement, Benson Upah, the Head of Public Relations for the NLC, advised the governor to resign.
“He should quit if he cannot pay. He took an oath of office to uphold the law and not to break it,” Upah asserted.
No official statement has been released by the Trade Union Congress in response to inquiries regarding the governor’s position.
Recall that last week, President Bola Tinubu signed the new Minimum Wage Act into law, officially setting the minimum wage at N70,000.
This decision followed nearly two weeks of negotiations between the President and the organised labour unions, who had initially demanded over N250,000/month minimum wage.
On July 18, the Federal Government, the organised labour, and the private sector concluded their months-long discussions on the minimum wage, resulting in a consensus for the N70,000/month figure.
Subsequently, on July 15, the Federal Executive Council tasked the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning with preparing a bill to amend the 2024 Budget.
A week later, President Tinubu submitted a request to the Senate to amend the 2024 Appropriation Act and the 2023 Finance Act, proposing an increase in the budget by N6.2 trillion.
The letter was addressed to the Senate President and read during a plenary session.
The President’s action was pursuant to Section 58 (2) of the Constitution.
The Federal Government has sought to allay fears regarding compliance with the new minimum wage, stating that the extensive negotiations and consensus-building efforts from early February to July included all relevant stakeholders.
