Slash Political Officials’ Security Votes To Accommodate Minimum Wage, Workers Tell Govt

A cross section of workers in Enugu State have urged the Federal Government to reduce cost of governance and security votes of political office holders to accommodate the new minimum wage.

The workers made the call in Enugu on Tuesday in separate interviews with newsmen while reacting to the inability of some state governments to pay the current N18,000 minimum wage.

Some of the respondents were optimistic that if state governors reduce their “frivolous, wasteful and ostentatious living,” paying the new wage would be easy.

A legal practitioner, Mrs. Nkechi Afadigwe, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to assent to the new wage of N30,000 to ease workers’ suffering.

“Different organs of government should reduce their cost of running government businesses to accommodate the minimum wage.

“The money spent on estacodes as a result of foreign trips should be enough to pay the minimum wage.

“Different organs of government should strengthen their revenue base to supplement the money allocated to them by the federation account to accommodate the wage,” Afadigwe said.

In the same vein, Mr. Joseph Ibe, a civil servant, said the new minimum wage had been a long battle between the Federal Government and the Nigeria Labour Congress, but believed that NLC was right.

“Ordinarily, in the spirit of rule of law, the minimum wage is supposed to have taken off long ago. If they can slash political office holders’ expenditures, they can save money and pay the new wage.

“Minimum wage will encourage workers to put in their best in their various offices.

“The wage increment will place Nigeria on top among the comity of nations towards the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals,” Ibe said.