Pass New Minimum Wage Like You Quickly Passed ‘New National Anthem’ – NANS Tells NASS, FEC

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has urged both the National Assembly (NASS) and Federal Executive Council (FEC) to act swiftly and treat the matter of the minimum wage with patriotism, as they did when they passed the new national anthem, ‘Nigeria, We Hail Thee’.

This is as NANS urged the federal government and labour unions to respond fairly as efforts are made to push forward the implementation of a new minimum wage for workers in Nigeria.

The organization’s National President, Comrade Lucky Emonefe, issued this plea on Tuesday in a statement he had issued to address the current disagreement between the government and labour groups.

Comrade Emonefe emphasized that the current minimum wage is undoubtedly inadequate and that a reassessment is critical.

He further articulated that in the pursuit of a more equitable Nigeria, all involved parties must act with shared intentions.

The statement said; “While pressing home our demands as unions there is a need to consider the consequences of our actions. We must not solve problems by creating more problems. The shutdown of activities vis-a-vis power, financial institutions, schools, and government parastatals leaves more negative impact on the downtrodden.

“As a sister union, we advocate for dialogue as a panacea for achieving demands. To ease the suffering of the masses, we call on labour to go back to the negotiation table to press her demands while allowing members to resume work.

“With the speed given to the passage of the new National Anthem, we also call on the National Assembly and Federal Executive Council to treat the demands of Nigerian workers in the same light with patriotism, considering the present economic reality in Nigeria.

“The Commander-in-Chief, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has always listened to Nigerian students and we shall continue to take such advantage in advocating for a better minimum wage for Nigerian workers.”