Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi state has praised President Bola Tinubu for establishing the Tripartite Committee on National Minimum Wage.
During the north-east zonal public hearing of the committee held in Yola on Thursday, March 7, Mohammed expressed his appreciation, stating that the committee represents a significant step towards addressing the nation’s wage policy needs.
“We commend Tinubu for his courage in setting up this committee. Not everyone would embrace such a task,” remarked the Bauchi state governor at the event in the Banquet Hall of the Government House Yola.
Mohammed emphasized the prevalence of widespread suffering and highlighted the importance of establishing a realistic minimum wage to alleviate it.
The zonal meeting in Yola, attended by delegates from the six states of the north-east, was chaired by the president of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Joe Ajaero.
In his opening address, Ajaero described the current minimum wage as inadequate, stating, “What they call minimum wage is now a starvation wage.” He further noted that the majority of workers spend their entire minimum wage on transportation alone.
Ajaero stressed that the purpose of the zonal meetings on the minimum wage is to gather the opinions of Nigerians. He also recommended the inclusion of ‘market hearings’ to consider the prices of goods in determining the acceptable national minimum wage.
