Akeredolu seeks review of revenue formula over new minimum wage

Ondo State Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu has pleaded with the Federal Government to urgently review the revenue formula to enable states and local governments to pay the new N30, 000 minimum wage.

He said Ondo State was not against the new minimum wage but that the Federal Government should review the revenue allocation sharing formula, by giving more money to states and councils to enable them implement the new minimum pay.

The governor stressed that his administration would support the implementation of the new wage, noting that his administration was committed to the welfare of the state’s workers.

He declared that in spite of shortfalls in revenue, the state government would not deprive the workers of their entitlements and benefits.

Also speaking with The Guardian on the matter, Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Mr. Donald Ojogo, affirmed that Akeredolu has always restated his administration’s commitment to the welfare of workers in the state’s service.

However, Chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Ondo State chapter, Sunday Adeleye, has revealed that the unions were waiting for the National Income Salary and Wages Commission (NISWC) to release the template for the new remuneration.

He said the timetable was not out and that its release by the Federal Government would form the basis for negotiation in Ondo State as organised labour could not negotiate without it.

“If we are to negotiate, what will be our data and what we be our point, where do we start from? We are waiting for the Federal Government to release the document so that we can take it up from there? As you can see, no state has done anything about the new minimum wage.

“I am sure the document will be out soon. Then we will know if the government is sincere or not. He had assured that as soon as the Federal Government releases the document, he will implement it,” Adeleye said.

Meanwhile, the ONDO State government yesterday alleged that it has uncovered a plot by some politicians to embark on a well-rehearsed campaign of calumny against the Governor Akeredolu-led administration.

In a statement issued in Akure, Ojogo described the plot as ignoble and inhuman, saying its main target was the governor and members of his immediate family.