State governors under the umbrella of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum have reportedly ruled out the option of paying N100,000 and above as the new minimum wage.
At their meeting on Thursday, June 6, the governors were said to have considered a minimum wage between N60,000 and N70,000.
According to The Nation, state leaders reviewed the country’s economic situation and concluded that anything above N70,000 would not be sustainable and affordable.
The governors then ruled out the option of paying N100,000 as many people have suggested. Sources familiar with the issue said the governors could not reach a conclusion on what should be paid between the N60,000 earlier proposed by the federal government and the N70,000 currently being paid by the Edo state government.
It was gathered that at the meeting, the governors set up a committee, headed by Hope Uzodinma of Imo state, to review the minimum wage.
Uzodinma is also currently the chairman of the progressives governors forum, which is a platform for governors elected on the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The governors’ stance echoed the previous statement from the NGF and the governor of Kwara state, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, that they would only agree to an ‘affordable and sustainable’ minimum wage.
The meeting of the governors comes after a recent industrial action by organised labour, which started on Monday, June 3 but was suspended temporarily afterwards to allow for further deliberation.
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