Minister of Labour and Employment,
Senator Chris Ngige, has said state governors are merely playing politics with
an alleged inability to continue to pay N18,000 minimum wage.
He said this at a meeting
with the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Abuja.
The minister blamed
labour for heating up the system by joining the governors to talk about reduction
or increasing the minimum wage.
“When the NLC joined the
governors in talking about minimum wage, with the governors saying we cannot
pay N18,000 minimum wage and NLC says it is time for us to ask for increase, we
now know that these talks are talks that are heating up the system. The NLC
knows better that the governors are playing politics. This is one matter that
you cannot play politics with because it is a matter of rule of law.
“The law in place now is
the Minimum Wage Act enacted by the National Assembly and the National
Assembly derived their powers from the Exclusive List of the constitution which
gives them power to make laws on labour-related matters, including minimum
wage.
“So, anybody who wants to
talk about minimum wage should go to the National Assembly or ask the
president to send an Executive Bill which can be discussed and it will be a
tripartite discussion, with the convening of a public hearing.
“Please, let a sleeping
dog lie, because this country is going through a very difficult time now and
require your prayers and support. Nobody can reduce wages now. If anything, if
you have more money, you pay higher,” the minister said.
- Sun News
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