The Presidency has urged Nigerians to be patient with President Bola Tinubu regarding the proposed bill on the new minimum wage, assuring that it will be transmitted to the National Assembly once it is ready.
Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, made this appeal in a phone conversation with The Press on Monday.
This assurance follows a call from the Organised Labour for the President to consult and reach an agreement with its leadership before sending the bill to the National Assembly. The labour union noted that their National Executive Committee meeting, which involves about 300 Labour leaders, is being delayed due to the President’s delay in transmitting the wage bill.
The last joint extraordinary National Executive Council meeting of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) was held on June 4. It was an emergency meeting to decide whether to continue or halt their strike following an agreement with the government.
In his Democracy Day address, President Tinubu claimed a consensus had been reached with Labour on the new wage. However, both the NLC and TUC disputed this claim.
A month later, with no further communication from Tinubu, Labour and the public remain anxious about the Federal Government’s plans.
Onanuga questioned the urgency for the bill’s transmission, asking for more time while admitting he did not know the exact date for submission.
“People should be patient,” he stated.
This plea comes a week after Onanuga reiterated that the N250,000 wage demand by the workers’ union is unsustainable, cautioning that the Federal Government cannot allocate all its resources to meet such a demand.
