By Victor Akaa
Akande Daniel Babatunde, a prominent Labour, Youth, and Students’ Rights Activist, has condemned the deliberate sabotage by state governors and private employers in the minimum wage negotiations. This sabotage, he argues, exposes their true intentions as class enemies of the working class.
He said, the minimum wage negotiations have been stalled since the old national minimum wage expired in April 2023, due to the governors’ and employers’ refusal to agree on a decent wage.
The Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) claims that the proposed ₦60,000 minimum wage is unsustainable, but Babatunde argues that the real issue is the excessive salaries and benefits of state governors and politicians.
The activist calls on the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to mobilize their members for a 48-hour national strike and mass protest against the proposed minimum wage and the government’s neglect of workers’ wages. He believes that Nigerian workers deserve a living wage that aligns with current inflationary pressures, and that with proper management of Nigeria’s resources, every citizen can receive a decent wage well above the ₦250,000 demanded by trade unions.
Babatunde urges labour unions to act decisively and demand a minimum wage of ₦250,000, emphasizing that the time for action is now.
