LAGOS – Prominent civil society organizations have expressed concern over the failure of several state governments to begin paying the N70,000 minimum wage, more than a month after it was announced by the Federal Government.
Despite the passage of the new minimum wage bill into law, only a few states have initiated the payment to their civil servants, The PUNCH reported last week. The House of Representatives Committee on Employment, Labour, and Productivity has confirmed that the matter will be addressed when the National Assembly resumes from its recess later this month.
Auwal Rafsanjani, Chairman of the Board of Amnesty International Nigeria, criticized state governments for neglecting the welfare of their workforce amid the country's ongoing economic challenges. “It is concerning that most states have yet to implement the new minimum wage, which became effective two months ago," Rafsanjani stated. "Given the growing economic pressures on Nigerian workers and citizens, state governments should have been more proactive in adopting the wage considering the financial hardships people are facing."
Rafsanjani, who also serves as Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), urged both the executive and legislative branches of government to collaborate to ensure swift implementation of the new wage law across all states.
Suraju Olanrewaju, Chairman of the Civil Society Network Against Corruption, attributed the delay in some states to a lack of political will rather than financial resources. “Many governors prefer to hoard state funds for personal gain rather than invest in governance," he said. "Interestingly, most states that have begun paying the wage are governed by opposition parties, showing that politics often plays a role in these matters."
Olanrewaju also emphasized the legal obligation of states to comply with the minimum wage law, suggesting that the National Assembly could enforce compliance by withholding federal allocations to non-complying states. “The National Assembly can pass a resolution directing the Federal Government to withhold allocations from states that fail to implement the new wage, forcing them into compliance,” he added.
Pro-democracy advocate Joe Okei-Odumakin, Founder of Women Arise, expressed skepticism about the wage’s impact, arguing that even if states implement the N70,000 wage, inflation and rising fuel costs would erode its value. "The prices of petroleum products, which affect transportation and energy costs, will quickly consume the increase. It's simply not enough," she said.
As the National Assembly prepares to deliberate on the issue, civil society groups continue to call for urgent action to ensure that state governments uphold the new wage law for the benefit of Nigerian workers.
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