Following the 15th Federal Executive Council meeting at the State House in Abuja on Monday, Minister of Information and National Orientation Mohammed Idris informed reporters that Tinubu would meet again with labor leaders as part of his ongoing stakeholder consultation.
Once an agreement was achieved on a new minimum wage, a measure amending the budget would be sent to the National Assembly.
The President and labor leaders met last Thursday, but the meeting was adjourned until Thursday without a decision on a new minimum wage.
After a dispute among the interested parties, the Tripartite Committee on the New National Minimum Wage had presented the President with two different amounts.
Organized Labor sought N250,000, while the government team and organized private sector offered N62,000 instead.
After reviewing the committee’s report, the president requested further time to discuss the findings with pertinent parties and harmonise the numbers before sending an executive measure to the National Assembly.
“The government has directed the Ministry of Budget to also come up with additional support for the 2024 Budget so that any differential or any gaps that will exist in terms of what existed before the 2024 Budget was approved and the Supplementary Budget and also what the requirement is for now,” the information minister told reporters after the FEC meeting.
You are also aware that Mr. President and the Nigeria Labour Congress met last week. In order to ensure that there is a thorough analysis of the situation and that the government comes up with a minimum wage that works for all Nigerians, the Federal Government, the organized private sector, and the sub-nationals, he had met with both the organized private sector and the sub-nationals following the submission of the report by the tripartite committee on labor. Today, that was also talked about.
In order to establish a minimum wage that, in the end, benefits all Nigerians, the government is working nonstop to achieve this goal. He stated, “Of course, this will be brought before the National Assembly for legislative support.
According to Idris, Tinubu was amenable to further talks with the Organised Labour and its affiliates.
“We anticipate holding that meeting on Thursday. Recall that the labor unions had already asked for this during their meeting with the President last week.
“Therefore, the President is on board. He is aware that both the administration and Labour want to resolve this minimum wage issue as soon as possible.
“Therefore, it is anticipated that the President will meet with the Nigeria Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress, and all of their affiliates on Thursday, as requested by them last week. Following their meeting, the President will forward any final agreements or his opinions regarding the tripartite committee’s report to the National Assembly for potential legislation,” Idris clarified.
The government spokeswoman clarified that while conversations are ongoing, the minimum wage amount was not discussed by the council.
“The idea of pay increases is not opposed by the President, the Federal Executive Council, or the Federal Government.
The problem has been finding a pay raise that we can support—that is, one that won’t drive up inflation, one that the organized private sector, subnationals, and the federal government can all afford, and one that is sustainable.
The President said that we may examine these wages every two to three years rather than waiting for a full five years before reviewing them. Therefore, he added, “the discussion was about the fundamental boundaries and the general idea of the pay increase itself, not about the figure itself.
The planned budget change, according to the minister, was required to account for recent developments in the budget, such as the upcoming increase in the federal minimum wage.
“It is not the case, and that is why the Minister of Budget has been asked to submit this additional information to the National Assembly to make it take an informed position on most of these,” Idris said in response to worries that Nigeria was operating two budgets.
We don’t want to discuss specifics because, of course, it is the custom of the executive to let the National Assembly reveal some of these things.
“Once it receives a budget, the National Assembly will undoubtedly take that action. In terms of procedure, the executive always complies with the National Assembly’s traditions.
LGs request greater funding.
In the meantime, Aminu Mu’azu-Maifata, the National President of ALGON, has demanded that the 774 LGAs receive a higher monthly allocation so that they can pay the new minimum wage when it is eventually enacted.
During a news conference in Lafia on Monday, he stated, “Once the new minimum wage is enacted by the National Assembly and becomes a law, each and every council chairman must obey,” in reference to the Supreme Court’s ruling giving LGAs financial autonomy.
But we’ll investigate how to follow such a law. We will not default by finding a mechanism to attract and coordinate resources in addition to finding the money to pay salaries.
Mu’azu-Maifata continued, saying, “On the issue of N62,000, after the tripartite committee submission, I clearly stated it as a member of that committee, I told them clearly that no council in the country would be able to shoulder the minimum wage, anything short of that, unless and until the revenue sharing formula is being reviewed to favor local government councils.”
“However, I am convinced that something will be done with the sharing formula that would release more funds to the local government councils because of President Bola Tinubu’s passion for the development and democratization of local government councils across the nation.” Thus, we will be prepared to address the situation before the minimum wage is decided upon in its entirety
He urged the 774 council chairmen to take advantage of the authority granted to local governments to improve the lives of those living at the grassroots level.
According to the president of ALGON, the autonomy given to the LGAs would strengthen democracy at the local level nationwide and provide local leaders the ability to make decisions that will improve the lives of their constituents.
He congratulated the President on his efforts to guarantee that local government councils carried out their constitutionally mandated functions.
Mu’azu-Maifata, who is also the chairman of the Lafia Local Government Area in Nasarawa State, declared that all council chairmen nationwide will use every effort to provide their constituents with the benefits of democracy.
“Prior to the Supreme Court’s ruling, autonomy was there and expressly stated in the constitution, but the players were not letting it see the light of day,” he said.
However, we know that everyone has taken notice of this announcement. Nigerians are currently waiting to see if the Supreme Court’s ruling be implemented.
I thus want to issue an appeal to all 774 LGA council chairs nationwide to make sure that you provide the greatest leadership possible for your people. To ensure that the people receive the benefits of democracy, you must make use of all the knowledge and resources at your disposal.
“We should not abuse these positive expectations, especially from President Bola Tinubu, who has a passion to see that local government councils across the country are functioning, as stated in the Federal Republic of Nigeria Constitution,” said the council chairs, who have high expectations from the federal government, the governors, and all Nigerians.
To make life more meaningful for those living at the grassroots level, he urged his colleagues to focus more on salary payment, the construction and renovation of basic healthcare facilities, assisting local schools in operating effectively, and guaranteeing sufficient security at the grassroots, among other issues.
Mu’azu-Maifata further urged all pertinent parties, such as members of the public and local government officials, to support the Supreme Court’s ruling and cooperate in maximizing its benefits for the general public.
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