N30,000 minimum wage: Governors insist on two conditions

The Nigerian Governors’ Forum, NGF, has insisted on two conditions under which it would pay the N30000 new minimum wage.

The Governors want a review of the sharing formula that will see them get more money or downsizing of workforce.

The Governors claimed that accepting to pay the new wage without fulfillment of the conditions will make the states go bankrupt
This has pushed the Federal Government to start considering a review of the federation allocation sharing formula.

Though the Minimum Wage Tripartite Committee had recommended N30,000, the Federal Government agreed to pay N24,000, while state governments insisted on N22,500.

Following the threat by the organised labour to shutdown the economy if the government refused to forward executive bill to the National Assembly on the N30,000 new minimum wage, the Federal Government on Tuesday summoned an emergency Federal Executive Council, FEC.
It was resolved at FEC that the matter should be tabled before the National Economic Council, NEC, for further deliberations.

A source privy to the NEC meeting of yesterday told Sun that the Federal Government has decided to take the governors’ request to the Council of State expected to meet on January 22.

The source said, “We are making progress. We will be meeting with the Council of State on Tuesday, January 22.

“The governors are asking for a review of the revenue sharing formula and government is looking at that.

“The Minimum Wage Technical Advisory Committee inaugurated recently is looking into the revenue sharing formula.”

On whether the Federal Government had agreed to allocate more resources to state governments, the source said “everything is in progress.”

Meanwhile, briefing State House correspondents after the NEC meeting, Governor of Kebbi State, Abubakar Bagudu, affirmed that “the issue of minimum wage was discussed.”

He, however, added that he did not have the mandate of the council to brief on that.