The President of Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ayuba Wabba, has accused state governors of waging a class war against Nigerian workers by refusing to pay the N30,000 new minimum wage agreed on by the tripartite committee set up by the Federal Government.
Speaking at an event in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital on Saturday, Wabba maintained that the organised labour would not back down in its demand for N30,000 minimum wage.
“And we have directed workers to vote out any state governor or his successor who says he is not ready to pay,” he added.
According to him, the organised labour would not fall for the explanation that their states lack capacity to pay the new minimum wage, praising the six state governors that have pledged to pay the new wage.
He accused the governors of wasting huge funds in security votes, further accusing them of not caring about workers.
“The governors may not care about workers because they are getting humongous security votes.
“A councillor who has no certificates receives more than a PhD holder. I want to believe this is a class contestation and we are up to the task.”
Wabba added, “In case the governors do not know , the police , those in the Department of State Services and Nigerian Army that are providing security for them ( governors ) , as well as the Nigerian populace , are involved in this minimum wage issue . So , we consider their refusal to comply as a way to divert our attention.
“I consider the governors ’ position as a trick that is not new to us . We consider this as an afterthought . This agitation started last year November , even when the review was supposed to take place in 2016. The governors were asked to send memoranda and 21 states complied.”