The Tripartite Committee on Minimum Wage has resumed talks over a new minimum wage for workers in the country.

The committee is meeting at NICON Luxury Hotel in Abuja.

DAILY POST reports that the Federal Government is represented by Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance; Atiku Bagudu, the Minister of Budget and National Planning; Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, the Minister of Labour; and representatives of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, along with the Head of Service of the Federation.

Joe Ajaero, the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and Festus Osifo, the President of the Trade Union Congress, TUC, are leading the organized labour delegation.

Abdulateef Shittu, the Director General of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, was present at the meeting even though none of the state governors was present at the time of filing this report.

DAILY POST reported that Labour suspended its nationwide indefinite strike on Tuesday after grounding the economy.

The Nigerian government has acknowledged that fuel subsidy expenditures are expected to surge to ₦5.4 trillion in 2024, according to a recent revelation by the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun.

This disclosure was made during the presentation of the Accelerated Stabilisation and Advancement Plan (ASAP) report, which outlines strategies to address critical challenges and stimulate growth across various sectors.

The projected subsidy cost for 2024 marks a significant increase from ₦3.6 trillion in 2023 and ₦2.0 trillion in 2022, highlighting a continuous upward trend in government spending on fuel subsidies.

This revelation comes amidst previous denials from the government regarding the complete deregulation of fuel prices.

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri, reiterated during a ministerial briefing on the anniversary of President Bola Tinubu’s administration that fuel subsidies had been entirely eliminated.

“I can confirm to you that subsidy is gone; officially, there is no subsidy; I want to make it clear that there is no subsidy in the country today,” Lokpobiri stated.

These statements come after significant policy shifts last year when President Tinubu declared the end of the fuel subsidy, leading to a hike in pump prices from ₦250 per litre to over ₦500. Prices have continued to climb, reaching an average of ₦702 per litre as of April 2024.

The persistence of fuel subsidies and the floating of the Naira have had a profound impact on the economy, contributing to soaring inflation rates. As of April 2024, Nigeria’s headline and food inflation rates had escalated to 33.69 percent and 40.53 percent, respectively.

Italian Serie A former champions, Napoli, have confirmed the appointment of former Juventus and Chelsea manager, Antonio Conte, as their new manager.
Antonio Conte has been without a coaching job since he left Tottenham Hotspur in the middle of the 2022-2023 season, the same season in which Napoli won the Serie A title for the first time in 33 years.

Unfortunately for Napoli, they completely collapsed in the 2023-2024 campaign, a season they couldn’t win any title and didn’t even qualify for European club football.

Despite the unpleasant state of Napoli which could lose Super Eagles of Nigeria striker, Victor Osimhen, to another club this summer, Antonio Conte decided to take the challenge.

After signing his contract with Napoli, the 54-year-old Italian tactician who has won the Serie A title three times in a row with Juventus and once with Inter Milan, said he is committed to the growth of Napoli.

“Napoli is a place of global importance. I am happy and excited at the idea of ​​sitting on the blue bench,” Conte said.

“I can certainly promise one thing, I will do my utmost for the growth of the team and the club. My commitment, together with that of my staff, will be total.”

Antonio Conte is expected to do better than Slovakian coach Francesco Calzona, and Walter Mazzarri who were in charge of Napoli in separate periods last season.

The strike declared by organised labour has reversed some of the gains made in May by stock market investors as the Nigerian Exchange Ltd (NGX) All-Share -Index (ASI) fell by 0.18 per cent on the first market day of June.

ASI fell to 99118.86 points from the 99,300.38 which it was on the last market day of May 2024.

Market capitalization dropped by 0.18 per cent to close at N56.07tn as investor’s wealth declined by N102.55bn.

On Monday, the volume and value of shares traded decreased by 19.45 per cent and 38.92 per cent to 349.59 million units and N5.24bn respectively.

Top losers were E-Tranzact International Plc which saw shares price dropping by 9.82 per cent of its value, Unity Bank Plc with a decrease of 9.80 per cent, Jaiz Bank Plc losing 9.65 per cent of its shares and MCnichols Plc which lost 9.09 per cent of its share value.

Banking stocks went south as Access Corporation lost 0.05 per cent of share price, First Bank Holdings lost 1.1 per cent shares and Unity Bank Plc lost 0.15 per cent of share price.

The bearish performance came on the background of labour strikes in Nigeria which crippled economic activities across all sectors.

THE WHISTLER reported that banks, schools, hospitals, airports and government offices were shut on the orders of the Nigerian Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress over a wage increase dispute with the Nigerian government.

Organised labour is demanding N494,000 minimum wage and embarked on an indefinite nationwide strike on June 3, 2024 but the federal government is offering a N60,000 wage.

But after deliberations on Monday night, June 3, 2024, the federal government has agreed to increase the N60,000. However, no amount was mentioned on the negotiation table between the government, private employers and organised labour.

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), on Tuesday, announced that it would shutdown power supply for one hour at the international terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos.

The power maintenance shutdown is expected to occur between 1:30pm and 2:30pm on Wednesday.

FAAN said this is to verify the issues affecting the Bus Riser 11KVA high tension panel on the ground floor – North of the international terminal 2.

“The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) hereby notify all stakeholders and the public that a maintenance shutdown of power supply shall occur at the International Terminal 2(ITZ-2) between 13:30 and 14:30 hrs on Wednesday, June 05, 2024.

“This is as a result of the urgent need to verify the issues affecting the Bus Riser 11KVA high tension (HT) panel on the ground floor, North of the International Terminal 2 (ITZ-2) of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos,” a statement by FAAN’s Director, Public Affairs & Consumer Protection, Obiageli Orah, said.

The agency assured that it would ensure that the shutdown has very minimal disruption to flight operations and passenger facilitation.

FAAN informed that airlines that operate within the maintenance hour would be relocated for check-in and arrival formalities at the International terminal 1.

“FAAN would ensure that the shutdown of power supply is with very minimal disruption to flight operations and passenger facilitation.

“The identified airlines, namely Rwanda Air (WB), EgyptAir (MS) and Qatar Air (QR) that operate within the maintenance hour will be relocated for check-in and arrival (parking) formalities at the International terminal 1(ITZ-1). All intending passengers on these flights should please take note.

“The Authority regrets any inconveniences this might cause our stakeholders and the travelling public.

“We are committed to world-class safety standards and service to all airport users,” Orah added.

Calls Accusations “False And Misleading”

Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, has denied allegations of misappropriation of funds made by Kafilat Ogbara, chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Women Affairs and Social Development.

The allegations were made during a programme hosted by Arise TV, where Ogbara claimed the minister had been petitioned and invited by the committee to explain the alleged misappropriation of funds in the ministry.

Musa Abdulrahaman, her media aide, denied the allegations in a statement, entitled: “Re: Allegations against Uju Kennedy, false, inaccurate and misleading.”

He categorically denied the allegations, describing them as false, misleading, and an attempt to discredit the minister, adding that the committee on Women Affairs has not communicated with the ministry regarding any petition or invitation for explanation.

Abdulrahaman said the Minister of Women Affairs has been praised for her significant impact on the lives of women and children across the nation, particularly in areas of empowerment, girls’ child education, and the fight against sexual and gender violence.

According to him, her commitment to transparency and accountability has been highlighted, with the office stating that she operates an open door policy and is accessible to all.

The media aide called on Ogbara and her committee to focus on delivering the dividends of democracy in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, rather than being distracted by false allegations.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has denied reports that it is set to revoke the licenses of Unity Bank, Keystone Bank, and Polaris Bank.

An online report claimed that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would revoke the licenses of three banks, allegedly following the revocation of Heritage Bank’s license.

The apex bank, in a post via its official X account on Tuesday, urged members of the public to dismiss the report.

“The content is fake and not from the CBN,” the post reads.

Vanguard reported that on Monday, the CBN revoked the operating licence of Heritage Bank.

According to the CBN, the decision was made due to the bank’s failure to improve its financial performance.

The statement partly reads: “The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, in accordance with its mandate to promote a sound financial system in Nigeria and in exercise of its powers under Section 12 of the Banks and Other Financial Act (BOFIA) 2020, hereby revokes the licence of Heritage Bank Plc with immediate effect.

‘This action has become necessary due to the bank’s breach of Section 12(1) of BOFIA, 2020.

“The Board and Management of the bank have not been able to improve the bank’s financial performance, a situation which constitutes a threat to financial stability.”

Two individuals were pronounced dead following an explosion involving a suspected Liquefied Natural Gas tanker at the Obiri-Ikwerre flyover on the outskirts of Port Harcourt in Rivers state.

The explosion occurred around 9:25 am when the tanker overturned while attempting to navigate the bypass at the flyover.

Almost immediately, it burst into flames, tragically engulfing a salon car with two individuals inside.

This unfortunate incident comes just a month after another devastating explosion caused by a fuel-laden tanker along the Eleme axis of the East-West Road.

The previous accident resulted in the loss of approximately five lives and the destruction of over 60 vehicles.

On the recent occurrence, the PUNCH quoted an eyewitness to have revealed that the two occupants of the car were unable to escape and were tragically burned to death.

“My office is just close by here. It was a terrible sight. Two persons inside a salon car parked nearby were burnt beyond recognition.

“The tanker was trying to negotiate through the flyover when it fell and the explosion occurred,” the eyewitness said.

Rivers Tanker Explosion

It is worth noting that the Obiri-Kwere flyover leads to the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa in the Ikwerre local government area of the state.

Another eyewitness, who identified himself as Lucky, said the sound of the explosion spread to residential areas near the flyover and caused panic.

He stated, ‘It was about past 9 am that I was driving towards the University of Port Harcourt that I saw the flames.

“I quickly made a u-turn because I was driving. Many vehicles started making a detour to avoid the scene of the fire, somewhere even videoing the fire with their phones”.

Confirming the explosion, the spokesperson of the State Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, “Yes, I can confirm that two persons died in the tanker fire. Myself and the Commissioner of Police, are on the ground as I speak to you.

“The fire has been put out but the area is still dangerous because the gas is still licking.

“So motorists are advised to take alternative routes to avoid any further casualty. The investigation is ongoing. “

The Senate on Tuesday promised to fast track its consideration and passage of a new Minimum Wage Bill for the country.

This is even as the Red Chamber commended the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress for suspending its indefinite strike for one week.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio made these remarks during plenary in Abuja.

Akpabio’s comments followed a motion calling on the NLC and TUC to suspend the strike.

The motion was sponsored by Senator Diket Plang (PDP – Plateau Central), who chairs the Senate Committee on Labour and Employment.

However, during debate on the motion, information got to the chamber that the NLC and TUC have suspended their strike action for one week to allow for further negotiations with the Federal Government.

Following the information, the Senate stepped down the motion.

Akpabio said: “Taking it (motion) will mean that we are jumping the gun and we are trying to settle the issues for them.

“There are many variables that they will look at – capacity to pay and the ability of states, local governments and private sector to even pay.

“They will also be looking at the fact that if the minimum wage is too high, then the possibility of retrenchment of workers will occur and I think they will do comparative analysis to know that the last minimum wage which was fixed at N30,000.00 by this parliament as an Act of the National Assembly, how many states were able to pay? How many local governments were able to pay? How many employers were able to pay?

“We’ll be looking at those things because it’s important that holistic approach be looked at and I have taken the suggestion that we should not rest until we arrive at an amicable resolution of the issue and that the National Assembly should also continue to make its own contributions towards the ongoing negotiations.

“On that note, I want to thank the Nigerian Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress for listening to the voice of Nigerians and the international community by calling off the strike to enable negotiations to continue and we wish them well in the negotiations.

“On our part, we will continue to do our best by making contributions and at the same time awaiting the incoming Bill on Minimum Wage for us to enact for the benefit of all Nigerians.”