* 2024 Appropriation (Amendment) bill expected Wednesday
By Chesa Chesa
President Bola Tinubu on Monday signed the new National Minimum Wage Bill – prescribing N70,000 – into law.
The signing ceremony was witnessed by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, who disclosed that the amendment to the 2024 Appropriation Act, expected to begin funding the new minimum wage, is expected to be passed by federal lawmakers on Wednesday.
Speaking to State House correspondents at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, after the ceremony, Akpabio stressed that the N70,000 minimum wage is not a maximum, as employers with the capacity to pay more are encouraged to do so.
He commended President Tinubu for his commitment to Nigerian workers, and noted that the National Assembly passed the bill in one day due to its importance.
Similar importance would e attached to the Appropriation Bill, he said while explaining that “we have gone very far with it and I expect that by Wednesday it will be signed”.
Still on the national minimum wage, the Senate President added: “I think this is a great day for the workers in the country. We are not only doubling the minimum wage, we have added something on top. Initially it was N30,000, now it is N70,000.
“Any employer that has the capacity can pay as much as you want, but no Nigerian worker will offer services and be paid anything less than N70,000 from today. That is the implication of this Act.
“It applies all over the nation and we are excited that this is happening at a time like this, through President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a man who cares for the Nigerian workers and you see what we are doing in the National Assembly, when it came the entirety of the National Assembly moved and passed the bill in one day out of excitement, we felt that this was not something we could delay. So I think the workers are happy”, he said.
Also speaking to journalists, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Tajudeen Abbas, said the signing of the new law was a demonstration of President Tinubu’s care for the wellbeing of Nigerians.
The Speaker, represented by the Leader of the House of Representatives, Professor Julius Ihonvbere, said “this is an action from the President to show that he cares about the Nigerian people.
“In addition to signing the North East Development Commission, the North West Development Commission and the South East Development Commission, this has never happened in Nigeria.
“So I think this movement from N30,000 to N70,000 and reducing the negotiation [from five to three] years is a clear demonstration of a commitment to redirect, refocus and reposition Nigeria for greatness”, he said.
