President Bola Tinubu has ordered the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, to present a detailed cost analysis for the proposed wage adjustments within the next two days.
This directive was issued during a crucial meeting at the presidential villa in Abuja.
The meeting included the government’s negotiation team led by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, who briefed correspondents after the meeting, highlighted the urgency with which the President is pushing for a resolution to the wage dispute that has seen extensive deliberations and heightened tensions across various sectors.
“The President convened a meeting with key representatives involved in the minimum wage negotiations. He has directed the Finance Minister to expedite the process of determining the financial impacts of the proposed wage increments and to report back within two days,” Idris explained.
This directive comes at a critical time when the Federal Government and organized labor are locked in negotiations to finalize a new national minimum wage.
The labor unions have been head-on on their demand for a significant increase, which has led to widespread industrial actions affecting major public services across the country.
“The president has just summoned a meeting of all those who negotiated on behalf of the federal government led by the secretary to the government of the federation, the minister of finance was there, the minister of information, the minister of budget and national planning, the minister of labor, and the NNPCL GMD.
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“We were all there to look at all issues and the president has directed the minister of finance to do the numbers and get back to him between today and tomorrow so that we can have figures ready for negotiation with labor,” He noted.
Idris assured of the president’s readiness to accept the committee’s resolutions, noting that “The president is determined to go with what the committee has said, and he’s also looking at the welfare of Nigerians.
“Government is not against or opponent of labor discussions, the government is not an opponent of wage increase but what is there is that government is always there to ensure that there is a balance between what government pronouncement is and what the realities are on the ground.
“And therefore, we will work assiduously to ensure that whatever promises the government makes are promises that will be kept. That is the idea of this meeting,” he added.
Furthermore, he said President Tinubu had directed the government representatives to work collectively with the organized private sector and the sub-nationals to achieve a new affordable wage award for Nigerians.
Idris explained that the President has given a matching order that all those who have negotiated on behalf of the federal government and all those who are representatives of organized private sectors, the sub nationals to come together to have a new wage award that is affordable, sustainable and that is also realistic for Nigerians.
“The wage award is not just that of the federal government as I mentioned earlier, the sub-nationals are involved, the organized private sector is involved; it was labor that stepped out during that procedure. Now we have come back to the negotiation table.”
The minister assured that all hands would be on deck to present a new minimum wage for Nigerians in one week.
“All of us will work together assiduously within the next one week to ensure that we have a new wage for Nigeria that is acceptable, sustainable and also realistic,” Idris said.
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