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By John Ogunsemore
Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana said the federal and state governments can meet organised labour’s minimum wage demands if looted monies are recovered.
The senior lawyer insisted that they must muster the political will needed to meet the wage demands.
Organised labour and the Nigerian government have been at daggers drawn over an acceptable new minimum wage.
At the last meeting of the Tripartite Committee on the New Minimum Wage in Abuja last Friday, organised labour insisted on N250,000 as the new minimum wage, reducing its demands from N494,000 it initially proposed.
However, the Federal Government merely increased its offer from N60,000 to N62,000.
On Wednesday, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, advised organised labour to settle for a national minimum wage that will not undermine the national economy and lead to mass retrenchment of workers.
Appearing on a Channels Television interview, Falana said, “The state governments that are saying they have no money to pay, the money is there.
“All they need, including the Federal Government, is to muster the political will to collect and recover money either looted or withheld from the federation account.”
The proposed minimum wage may have to wait until July 2 as the National Assembly is on currently holiday.
