According to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the ₦70,000 minimum salary is woefully insufficient to cover workers’ basic expenses for accommodation, food, and transportation.
In his just published book, “Nigeria: Past and Future,” Obasanjo made the comments and charged that labor leaders had betrayed workers by putting their own interests ahead of the wellbeing of the workforce as a whole.
The former president maintained that Nigeria’s present economic situation is not reflected in the new minimum wage.
This is the state of affairs in Nigeria during the third decade of the twenty-first century. He added, “For some workers, the minimum wage does not even cover transportation costs, let alone food, housing, and family upkeep.”
The former president proposed that the cost of living, inflation rate, and purchasing power of Nigerian workers should all be considered when determining a genuinely livable wage.
Obasanjo charged labor leaders in Chapter 17 of his book with sacrificing workers’ interests in order to further their own political aspirations.
“Workers are not receiving enough attention. For much too long, people have been deprived of their right. He wrote, “Those who were supposed to safeguard their interests have instead turned against them.”
He also attacked union officials who purportedly fought for better working conditions and fair wages instead of negotiating for personal gains.
Read Also: Violence Erupts as Security Forces Allegedly Clash with Ijaw Youths, Leaving Three Injured
Obasanjo went on to say, “How did it come to pass that a trade union leader was negotiating with a political party to be accepted as a candidate for governor while in office? Most union leaders fall short of the founding fathers’ goals in terms of effectiveness due to their political aspirations.
Some labor leaders, according to Obasanjo, engage in “sabre-rattling,” which is the practice of creating noise about the wellbeing of workers in order to accept bribes behind closed doors and keep quiet.
“Instead of engaging in negotiations that benefit the workers, they engage in sabre-rattling, call them into the room, stuff them with large sums of money, and then remain silent,” the older statesman asserted. Since 2015, that has been true. Furthermore, it is getting worse, if anything.
Obasanjo claims that labor leaders are compensated to remain silent.
According to Obasanjo, certain government officials have publicly acknowledged buying labor leaders to stop them from demonstrating against unjust policies.
