Fashola, Fayemi, back planned decentralisation of minimum wage

Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State and
his Ekiti State counterpart, Dr. Kayode Fayemi
have expressed support for the planned
removal of minimum wage from the Exclusive
list to the Concurrent list, by the Federal
Government, saying “it was long overdue.”
The governors, however, urged the Nigerian
Union of Labour, NLC and Trade Union
Congress TUC, to sheath their sword and
support the removal, maintaining that it would
decentralized the fixing of minimum wage in
the country.
The duo spoke yesterday, at the commissioning
of the South West Zonal office of the National
Pensionsn Commission NPC, in Ikeja, which
also had in attendance Governor Ibikunle
Amosun of Ogun State, Chairman Senate
Committee on Establishment, Senator Alloysius
Etok and Senator Gbenga Ashafa and Babafemi
Ojudu, respectively, as well as the Vice
Chairman of the House Committee on
Establishment, Mr. Samson Okwu among other
dignitaries.
“If we are truly a federal entity, there isn’t
any reason why we shouldn’t have minimum
wage at the state level rather than an imposed
minimum wage from the national. Having a
national minimum wage doesn’t stop us from
having the state minimum wage.” They
maintained.
According to Fashola:“If we are decentralising
the management of pension and it is making
sense, why can’t we decentralise payment of
wages in the country. This is a federation and
there is need for us to have an open and
robust debate about it.”
“And the demand for wages does not mean
that we should shutdown the economy. This is
where we must show maturity in our
democracy that we will have protest and
disagreement but we will find the right answer,
so that government and private sector will
continue to work”.
Fashola, urged labour to dialogue with the
appropriate government authorities on
reaching an agreement on the issue, saying
incessant protests were inimical to
development of the nation.
Fayemi said: “The time has come for us to
speak openly for what we believe in. We may
disagree. I have never claim the monopoly of
any idea and no one can.
The labour has a position but perhaps there is
need for them to listen to another opinion on
the issue of minimum wage. For us it is not
the person who makes the law that matters it
is whether or not Nigerian workers gets a fare
pay for a hard job. Who make the law and
other issues only distract us from the real
issue.”
“I remember that at the early stage of our
independence, the Western region workers
were leaving the federal public service to work
in the state public service because the salary
offered by the government of the West was
much better than the minimum wage offered
by the central government. It is time for us to
return to that period for us to strengthen our
federalism.”
In his remarks, Governor Amosun, urged the
National Assembly to expedite action on the
amendment of the Pension Act to address
some of its challenges.
He attributed the N13 billion pensions arrears
his administration had inherited to the
imperfection of the old scheme, expressing the
optimism that transition to the new scheme
would ensure pensioners were paid as at when
due.
Earlier, Acting Director-General, NPC, Ms
Chinelo Anohu-Amazu said the new South-West
Zonal office would facilitate the efficient
management of workers’ pensions by the
commission.