Minimum Wage: Consequential Increments Will Depend On Each State’s Capacity – NGF

The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), on Monday said that the
consequential increments in the implementation of the N30,000
Minimum Wage Law would depend on the capacity of each state
government.

The chairman of the forum and Governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode
Fayemi, stated this while briefing newsmen at the end of the
meeting of the forum held in Abuja.

Fayemi reading the meeting’s communique said that the forum made
the resolution when it met and reviewed current progress in the
implementation of the minimum wage law.

Clarifying on the forum’s position and Federal Economic Council
(FEC)’s decision, Fayemi said that while state governors agreed to
the N30, 000, FEC did not determine what happens in the states.

He said that each state had its State Executive Council, which
is the highest decision making body at the state level.

“The forum as the representative body of the states keenly
followed what happened in the negotiations that led to that
template.

“As far as we are concerned, the best the forum can do is to
stick with what has been agreed with the states. States are part of
the tripartite negotiations.

“States agreed to that N30,000 minimum wage increase.

“States also know that there will be consequential adjustment
but that will be determined by what happened on the state-by-state
basic.

“Because there are different number of workers and different
issues at the state level.

“Every state has its own trade union joint negotiating committee
and they will undertake this discussion with their state
governments.

“The day after this agreement was reached with labour, it was on
record that I was on a national television and made the position of
the governors clear.

“That for us this was a national minimum wage increase, not a
general minimum wage review.

“Yes, that may necessitate consequential increment, we have no
doubt about that but that is a matter for the states to discuss
with their workers,’’ he said.

Fayemi also pledged the governors’ commitment to counterpart
resources to strengthen mass vaccination campaigns against yellow
fever at the states.

He commended the rapid response of the Nigeria Centre for
Disease Control and the National Primary Health Care Development
Agency to nip in the bud the August yellow fever outbreak in parts
of the country.

“Members commended the progress made by state governments
through their Social Health Insurance Authorities to enrol and
provide health insurance cover for citizens across the country.

“In the last one year, state governments have registered over
two million people compared to five million Nigerians registered
under the National Health Insurance Scheme over the last 14
years,’’ he said.

Fayemi also expressed the forum’s tribute to Dr Stella Adedavoh,
the physician who attended to `Patient 0’ during the Ebola Outbreak
in 20I4 in Lagos State.

“Adedavoh died from Ebola virus on Oct. 21, 2014, but her memory
lives on with the dream of `Healthcare for all Nigerians’’’, he
said.

Fielding question on Gov. Nasir el-Rufai’s ad hoc committee on
excess crude account and other special account, the governor said
it was a committee of the National Economic Council.

He, however, said that the report would be submitted on Tuesday
to the council.

On the N614 billion support to states by the federal government,
Fayemi said the governors did not have any issues with the
deduction, adding that “it has been deducted as far as I am aware,
from state accounts.’’