A cross section of workers in Enugu State have urged the Federal Government to reduce security votes and cost of governance of political office holders to accommodate the new minimum wage.
The workers made the call in Enugu on Tuesday in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) while reacting to 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.
Mrs Nkechi Afadigwe, a legal practitioner urged President Muhammadu Buhari to assent to the new wage of N30,000 to ease the sufferings of workers.
“Different organs of government should reduce their cost of running government businesses to accommodate the minimum wage.
“The money spent on esta-codes 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 (NLC), but believed that NLC movement was right.
“Ordinarily, in the spirit of rule of law, the minimum wage supposed to have taken place long ago. If they can slash political office holder’s expenditure, 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 nation in regards to attainment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG),” Ibe said.
Mrs Agatha Ogbaji, a caterer urged the Federal Government not to increase the tax adding that if they do so, inflation would be too high in the country.
“There must be improved productivity on the part of workers to justify the money they were fighting for,” Ogbaji said.
