By the end of October, workers in Anambra State will begin to earn the new minimum wage, reports Ikeugonna Eleke.
In May this year, Governor Soludo came under fire when the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Joe Ajaero, said in passing, during a television interview that the Governor of Anambra State, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, was inciting other governors against accepting N70, 000 minimum wage during a meeting with the governors at the negotiating stage.
In reply to this, the Anambra State Governor had described the allegation as false. In a press statement by his Press Secretary, Mr Christian Aburime, Soludo denied that he was running an anti-workers government in Anambra, while also listing his numerous achievements for workers in the state.
The opposition party in the state however refused to listen to Soludo’s explanations that the allegations were false. They capitalized on this to discredit his government as anti-people, anti-workers and not worthy of the people’s vote a second time.
To take this further, many had stated that even if the Federal Government signed the new Minimum Wage Law, the Governor may renege on payment, but on October 1, during the Independence Day Celebration, Soludo shocked naysayers by announcing that from the end of October, the State Government under his watch would begin to pay workers in the state the new minimum wage.
Before then, the Governor had also given the hint while holding a meeting with heads of government owned nursery and primary schools. He had said: ‘From next month, we also hope to start paying the new minimum wage of N70, 000.’
The Governor also made a pronouncement about extending the Free Education Policy of the State to Senior Secondary Schools. He said: ‘From next week, the Free Education Policy will be available to senior students in all public schools in Anambra. I assure that even with the binding resource constraint, this administration will continue to work very hard to deliver on the mandate.’
On Independence Day, when he gave a reassurance of the promise to pay the new minimum wage, the announcement elicited joy and jubilant chants from workers in the state. Some of the workers who spoke with journalists praised Soludo for his commitment to ensuring not just that Anambra was developed, but also caring for the welfare of the state’s workforce.
In his reaction, the State Chairman of the Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, Comrade Humphrey Chukwuemeka Nwafor, commended the Governor for listening to the lamentations of Anambra workers amidst the hardship in Nigeria. He appealed to the Governor to keep to the announcement, noting that it was one thing to make the announcement, and another thing to implement it.
A staff member of the State Government, Mrs Amaka Ezenwafor, said: ‘Soludo has shown himself to be a great leader, and most importantly, he is showing that he has the welfare of workers at heart. We pray that God will continue to bless Anambra with leaders like him.’
The decision of the Anambra State Government to pay the new Minimum Wage is expected to douse tensions between it and the labour force, even if temporarily.
