The Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum, has ordered the immediate implementation of the new ₦70,000 minimum wage for local government workers.
Governor Zulum gave the directive to all 27 Local Government Area (LGA) chairmen on Sunday during a high-level meeting with the leadership of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), and the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) at the Government House in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State.
He urged all local government chairpersons to return to their localities, engage stakeholders, and develop a workable solution for the salary problem at the local government level.
Retrenchment of Workers
The governor revealed that the new minimum wage of ₦72,000 had already been fully implemented for state civil servants and all primary school teachers.
He, however, cautioned against the retrenchment of workers as a means of solving salary challenges.
“We are not in support of staff retrenchment at the local government level.
I direct you to institute a mechanism that will lead to the implementation of the minimum wage. I appeal to local government workers to be patient as we work closely with all 27 local government areas to ensure this is achieved,” said the governor.
Overbloated Workforce
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Local Government and Emirate Affairs, Modu Alhaji Mustapha, attributed the delay in the implementation of the minimum wage—at the local government level—to an over-bloated workforce.
According to him, the local government areas in Borno State collectively have about 90,000 staff, compared to Kano State’s 30,000 staff across its 44 local government areas, despite its larger population.
“Our Local Government Areas are overstretched. For example, Maiduguri Metropolitan Council receives less than ₦700 million as an allocation from the Federation Account.
Yet, it requires ₦778 million to pay salaries at the ₦70,000 minimum wage rate.
This leaves nothing for other critical services like health, water supply, security and infrastructure,” said Mustapha.
Commendation
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) in Borno State, Comrade Yusuf Inuwa, commended the state government for its full implementation of the ₦72,000 minimum wage for primary school teachers.
According to him, Borno is recognised at national executive meetings as one of the few states paying the approved wage to teachers at the primary level, a move that has earned the state commendation from the union’s national leadership.
Nairametrics