Nigeria Content Online

After the first
reading of the National Minimum Wage amendment bill yesterday, the
House of Representatives pledged a rapid delivery of the new law that
will enforce the N10,500 pay rise announced by the government last year.

With two more
readings, that will include committee considerations and plenary
approvals, the proposal sent in by President Goodluck Jonathan after
tense negotiation with the Labour, will soon be law, allowing civil
servants to be paid N18,000 minimum.

The Deputy
Speaker, Usman Nafada, said the processes, normally stretching through
24 weeks at the least, will be finalised “soon enough” to allow for
presidential assent before current legislative session ends in May. “We
have done it before and we will do it again,” Mr. Nafada revealed this
at a meeting he had with the leaders of Labour Congress and other
affiliate groups , shortly after the bill’s first reading on Tuesday.
“It will be passed before the end of their tenure, not on the day of
their leaving, but about one or two months away to allow the president
enough time sign it,” he said. The Labour officials said they came to
appreciate the legislators for giving attention to the bill and to
lobby for more commitment.

The new wage
benchmark has formed a significant rallying point for Mr. Jonathan’s
administration as the president presses for wide political support from
public and private sector workers alike, ahead of April general
elections. A prolonged negotiation that forced the amount down from the
N52,000, NLC insisted on before.

Addressing the
lawmakers yesterday, NLC, led by its president, Omar Abdulwaheed, said
workers are a “patient” bulk, and are thankful to the lawmakers for
their expeditious attention to the bill. “We want to thank the House
very much for the commitment it has shown so far to get this bill
passed,” he said. He however tasked the members to accelerate the
passage of the bill, well awaited by workers.