Some governors have received warnings from Organised Labour not to give President Bola Tinubu incorrect counsel that will cause the nation to descend into a state of bitterness, suffering, and slot gacor hari ini poverty.
It also reaffirmed that the next course of action would depend on President Tinubu’s stance on the two recommendations from the Tripartite Committee on the National Minimum Wage’s final report that he had before him.
Remember that on the final day of the tripartite committee meeting on the new national minimum wage, organised labor—the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC)—demanded N250,000 as a new living wage, while the government team and organised private sector had offered N62,000?
The NLC’s Head of Information, Comrade Benson Upah, told Vanguard Weekend that the relevant organs of the two labour centres would make the final judgement regarding any amount the President submitted to the National Assembly. Additionally, he disregarded the idea of going on strike right away, saying that strikes would only be used as a last resort and that they wouldn’t fix every issue.
Comrade Upah told Nigerians to hold off on drawing conclusions while he addressed concerns about the agitation in some quarters that President Tinubu had delayed making a statement about the figure to be transmitted to the National Assembly. He argued that the report was sent to the President during the period between Democracy Day and Sallah, when some important stakeholders had to leave Abuja.
He said: “At the time the tripartite committee submitted the report to the President, there was Democracy Day and then the Sallah break, all of which were practically lumped together for the political stakeholders to travel.
“So, on the length of the time taken for the transmission of the executive bill, we have no issue with that, what we are concerned about is what will be transmitting to the National Assembly.”
Asked how organised labour would respond if the government chose to accept its N62,000 offer rather than the N250,000 that labour had demanded.
He said “Well, let the government come up with it first and then I even want you to note that there is division in the ranks of the government team, with governors saying they can’t even pay the N62,000.
“So, whatever the government transmits to the National Assembly will determine our mood. Let us wait to reach the bridge before we cross it.”
Regarding the claim that state governors were impeding the implementation of a new minimum wage and obstructing organised labor’s response to the governors’ opposition to a living wage, Upah stated that while these governors were few, they were highly loud.
“In fairness, we will not say the state governors are the obstacle, it is a vocal minority in the ranks of the governors that is projecting the governors as bad and dishonest people and we know that minority group.
“Quite a number of governors have come out to say that whatever they say is the minimum wage, we are ready to pay, quite a number of them have said so.
“Our message is to the vocal minority in the rank of the governors, giving the governors a bad name, misleading the President and creating a major social problem in the country. We would warn them to retrace their steps, their behaviour in their state has not enhanced the wealth or capacity of their states.
“We will advise them to retrace their steps, instead of giving a piece of advice that is capable of plunging the country into a state of impoverishment, misery and resentment.
On the possibility of labour going on strike, if government remained adamant to pay N62,000, Upah said: “We have said again and again that whatever government offers in the final analysis will be subject to the decision of the appropriate organs of the two labour centres.
