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Hopes by workers that the implementation of the N18,000 new minimum wage will begin this month have been dashed, as the National Council of State on Thursday deferred its approval.

Although the council, which comprises the President, vice-president, past Nigerian leaders and governors, said it was “sympathetic to the idea,” it, however, explained that its implementation had to be put on hold temporarily because of ‘technical and practical issues.’

Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole made this known in Abuja just as the Nigeria Labour Congress raised a committee to ensure effective mobilisation of workers for its three-day warning strike over the delay in the implementation of the new wage.

The governor, who briefed journalists after the meeting presided over by Vice-President Namadi Sambo, did not state what constituted the ‘technical and practical issues.’

But he said that the council raised a sub-committee headed by Sambo to “fine-tune those areas.”

Oshiomhole said the members of the committee were himself, Governors Babatunde Fashola (Lagos), Sullivan Chime (Enugu), Gabriel Suswan (Benue) and Sule Lamido (Jigawa).

The committee has two weeks to submit its report to the NCS, which will meet in late November.

The Edo State governor said, “The council received the report (on the minimum wage) and was sympathetic to the idea, but it observed that there were a couple of technical and practical issues to be sorted out.

“It resolved to set up a sub-committee to be chaired by the vice-president with some governors as members. The committee will fine-tune those areas so that at the end of the day, we will have a package that can be implemented in a way that will not cause any crisis around the country.”

But Oshiomhole, a former NLC president, faulted the congress on the manner it announced the planned warning strike over the minimum wage.

He said, “When I was at the NLC, I always argued the case that it was disrespectful to inform your principals through the media. Those technical issues will be raised with the NLC and they will be raised directly, not through a third party, like the media.”

A few hours before the NCS meeting ended, the NLC constituted an 11-member committee to mobilise workers for the strike planned for November 10 – 12.

Members of the committee, led by a Vice- Chairman of the NLC, Mr. Promise Adewusi, are Owei Lakemfa, Isa Aremu, Ola Elijah, Marcus Omokhuale, Ben Basue, Uche Ekwu, Chris Uyot, Valentine Udeh, Obukese Orere and Mansur Musa.

Adewusi, who is also the national president of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, told journalists in Abuja that the congress was firm in its determination to ensure the implementation of the new wage.

He recalled that the NLC demanded a N52,200 minimum wage in 2008 to alleviate workers’ plight but had to accept N18,000 as the minimum wage.

Adewusi said, “Due to the very high cost of living, the NLC made a demand for N52,200 as minimum wage in 2008, to which the Federal Government agreed and set up a negotiating committee.

“The NLC out of patriotic zeal later agreed to a very low N18, 000 new minimum wage, which itself cannot take care of the worker, spouse and four children.

“It is instructive to note that the National Assembly has indicated readiness to give the minimum wage bill accelerated passage once the Executive presents it. But many months after, the government has refused to submit the bill to be passed into law.

“The National Assembly cannot even do anything because the bill is yet to be placed before it. So, in the event that by November 9, nothing happens, this committee will ensure that the strike is effected.”

He said the NLC had already opened channels of communication with its affiliates and state councils on the looming strike.

Adewusi said, “We are also saying that there is no going back. By the 10th of this month, every worker within Nigeria must stop work, the airplanes will not fly, we will make sure that the ports and the wharfs are shut down; but we hope it does not come to that.

“The roads will be closed and any worker who is found on the road on those three days will be treated as a traitor.

“The warning strike of three days is the first in the series of actions that will be embarked upon to actualise the minimum wage demand.” The Chairman of NSIWC, Chief Richard Egbule, had said at a news conference in Abuja that the report was before the council of state.

He had said, “It (report) is at the stage where I have been invited now to go to NCS now to talk on it. It has not been tampered with; it has gone through NEC and is now at the NCS. I have been called to go there .” Continued from page 2



Egbule explained that the commission played a very active role in all the processes that led to the review of remuneration in the Federal Public Service, through the provision of technical input and advice.

He said that the commission also “participated on government side in negotiations with staff unions such as the renegotiation of 2001 ASUU-FGN agreement, which was concluded in 2009.

“Following the efforts of the commission and other stakeholders, government recently approved increases in the pension of retirees from the public service in relation to salary, which occurred from 2001 to 2007,” the NSIWC chairman said.

The NLC received a major support for the strike from the Trade Union Congress, which said on Thursday that it would join in the work boycott.

TUC, in a statement by its President-General, Mr. Peter Esele, and Secretary-General, Mr. John Kolawole, said it had decided to be a part of the strike in order to ensure that government honoured standing agreements.

TUC said that the Federal Government had shown lack of commitment and unfaithfulness to the terms of agreement reached between it and labour.

There had been fears that the Federal Government currently lacked the resources to implement the scheme following a series of delay in its implementation.

The delay had made the leadership of the NLC to issue strike threats. For instance, the congress had on October, 27 issued a 14- day ultimatum to the government to implement the new wage or face a three-day work boycott by workers.

Meanwhile, NEC has said that some aspects of the National Sovereign Wealth Fund Bill should be streamlined before being sent to the National Assembly for passage in to law.

Katsina Governor, Ibrahim Shema, who briefed journalists on this, said the council agreed that the bill should be sent for further consultations.

NEC had in its April 20 meeting endorsed the formation of NSWF as a substitute to the Excess Crude Account, which currently manages the nation’s extra earnings from higher prices of crude oil.