No fewer than seven states and the Federal Capital Territory have failed to approve the minimum wage expected to commence in October this year.

This is as 25 states have commenced payment or made a pronouncement on the amount to pay as the minimum wage.

The states that have yet to approve a particular minimum wage amount are Zamfara, Sokoto, Osun, Cross River, Imo, Plateau, Taraba, and the FCT.

Saturday PUNCH gathered that paying the N70,000 minimum wage may take a long time in Zamfara, as the state just began paying the old N30,000 minimum wage.

Recall that the N30,000 minimum wage took effect in April 2019, but Governor Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State commenced the payment to the civil servants in June this year.

The state has yet to make any statement on the N70,000 minimum wage as of the time of filing this report.

Also, Sokoto State has yet to commence payment of the minimum wage despite Governor Ahmed Aliyu’s promise that his administration would be among the first states to do so.

Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke, had declared that his administration would pay the minimum wage, but the state has yet to approve any amount or commence payment of the minimum wage.

Speaking with Saturday PUNCH on Thursday, the Chairman of the Trade Union Congress in the state, Bimbo Fasasi, said the state was about to finalise the implementation process.

Fasasi, a member of the Labour/Osun State Government negotiation committee on the new minimum wage, said, “We are getting there, we are at the stage of comparing tables and exchanging tables between us. I’m confident we will soon have a meeting point and we will be able to make formal announcements and implementation will most definitely follow immediately.”

Cross River State has also not approved the N70,000 minimum wage.

On May 1, 2024, Governor Bassey Otu of the state announced N40,000 as a new minimum wage for civil servants before the national minimum wage.

TUC Chairman in the state, Monday Ogbodum, said labour unions were still negotiating the new minimum wage with the state government.

The minimum wage is also yet to take effect in Imo State, though Governor Hope Uzodimma assured workers that his government was committed to its implementation.

Saturday PUNCH gathered that the state government and labour were already discussing the minimum wage.

The Vice Chairman of TUC in the state, Charles Amaru, disclosed that there was no agreement on payment by the state government yet.

He said, “The organised labour is still discussing with the state government on the template for payment. The discussion is prone to having fruitful outcomes and the government has said that everyone will be comfortable with the amount that will be paid.”

There has been grave silence on the minimum wage in Plateau State, just as the Taraba State Government has yet to commence the payment of the N70,000.

On September 5, 2024, Governor Agbu Kefas of the state said he was prepared to pay the new national minimum wage, adding that the Head of Service and the labour were already discussing the implementation.

The FCT has yet to speak on the minimum wage implementation as of the time of filing this report.

However, workers across the country have continued to lament the lingering economic hardship, noting that N70,000 is no longer enough for them.

The workers who spoke randomly with Saturday PUNCH said the fuel and electricity tariff hikes, inflation, and high cost of living have seriously reduced the value of the N70,000.

A staff member of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Abuja, who pleaded anonymity stated that the labour leaders made a mistake by accepting the N70,000 minimum wage without considering the economic reality.

“We were not expecting our leaders to accept the N70,000 as minimum wage because the price of foodstuffs, fuel, electricity tariffs, and fuels continue to go up.

“The amount is not enough for us at all. The living standard in Abuja is high and it is a reality that we cannot survive on N70,000 every month.”

Also, a civil servant at Ayedire Local Government, Osun State, said the N70,000 was not proportionate to the economic hardship, adding that the minimum wage couldn’t feed a family for two weeks.

He queried, “What is the quality and quantity of the foodstuffs to buy with N70,000? How long will it take to exhaust the minimum wage in the face of fuel hikes and inflation? Life is not easy for us.”

Recall that the organised labour said they accepted the N70,000 minimum wage because of President Bola Tinubu’s promise not to increase fuel prices.

But the fuel price was increased in September and has continued to increase since then, a development that made the Nigeria Labour Congress declare that the president betrayed the labour unions.

The President of the NLC, Joe Ajaero, on September 20, said Tinubu betrayed the organised labour, using fuel as bait.

Ajaero noted that the cost of petrol has undermined the benefits of the N70,000 national minimum wage, urging the government to urgently address the pressing issues of hunger, poverty, and frustration affecting Nigerians.

Ajaero recounted discussions with Tinubu before the acceptance of the N70,000 minimum wage, stating that during negotiations, the president offered the option of accepting the N70,000 wage without further increase in fuel prices.

The Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical is set to begin fuel exports to South Africa, Angola, and Namibia, Saturday PUNCH can confirm.

A highly credible source, who confirmed this exclusively to one of our correspondents on Friday, said the management of the 650,000-barrel per-day capacity refinery was at advanced stages of talks with the countries to start lifting fuel.

Our correspondents gathered that four other African countries – Niger Republic, Chad, Burkina Faso and Central Africa Republic – had also started negotiation with the refinery.

Saturday PUNCH was reliably informed that more countries were being expected to signify interest in lifting fuel from the refinery in the coming months.

Ghana was recently reported to have expressed interest in buying petrol from the $20bn Lekki-based refinery.

The Chairman of the National Petroleum Authority, Ghana, Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, said the arrangement with Dangote refinery would end his country’s monthly $400m fuel imports from Europe.

“I can confirm to you that talk is actually at advance stage with Ghana, Angola, Namibia and South Africa, while initial discussion is coming up with Niger, Chad, Burkina Faso and Central African Republic,” the source said.

When asked why marketers are insisting on not buying from Dangote despite the refinery’s capacity, the source said the dealers had hidden agenda.

“However, between now and January 2025, their plan would be exposed. Dangote refinery remains the hope of this country for a sustainable supply of petrol and the refinery has the capacity to serve the entire country,” the source added.

Meanwhile, local marketers have resolved to import fuel from outside the country.

The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria and the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria last week insisted on fuel importation after accusing the Dangote refinery of selling fuel to Nigerians at an exorbitant price.

The marketers are awaiting the approvals of the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority to import cheaper petrol.

The marketers argued that importing more affordable petrol would offer relief for consumers still adjusting to the price surges following the removal of fuel subsidy.

However, to proceed, the marketers requested access to foreign exchange from the CBN, and permits from NMDPRA to ensure compliance with fuel quality and regulatory standards.

The NMDPRA has, however, refuted claims that IPMAN and PETROAN were allowed to obtain petrol import licence as associations.

An official of the NMDPRA, who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, said the agency could not approve the request of oil marketers to obtain import licence as an association, but based on individual requests.

The source added that individual application was the stipulated law and could not be shelved.

“The truth of the matter is that they can’t apply for petrol import licence as a body or association. Individual marketers have to apply by themselves before they can be granted that licence. They have to apply by themselves. We are not going to give the permit jointly so they can’t apply as an association.

“So, this also means that if individual marketers don’t apply for it, we can’t approve it.”

Responding, the National Public Relations Officer of PETROAN, Dr Joseph Obele, said the association applied for the import licence about one month ago through its newly incorporated trading wing.

He described Dangote as an “aggressive competitor” who would go to any length to monopolise the market.

“You should know that Dangote is just out to close all the doors and windows so that no person enters the market. He is determined to ensure that nobody enters the market as a competitor. We assure Nigerians that as soon as the regulatory agency approves our authority to import, this price of PMS that is causing pain to Nigerians right now will crash to the barest minimum.

“The product we are planning to import is one of the best products so far, far better than his (Dangote) own, but he is just telling Nigerians that any product that is coming into the country is not better than his own.

“We call on Nigerians to support the call for dismantling monopolies so that we can liberate the market; otherwise, we will remain in the trap we are. We are trapped at the moment; we are trapped with exploitation and the only way out of the trap is to dismantle every dimension of monopoly and we are calling on Nigerians to support us,” Obele said.

President Bola Tinubu has approved that ministers of state be given full powers to supervise the agencies under them, TheCable can report.

Until now, files pertaining to departments and agencies under their supervision were sent by their permanent secretaries to the senior ministers.

With the new dispensation, ministers of state can now grant all necessary administrative approvals on the governance process of these agencies and departments.

According to a source in the office of the head of service of the federation, “the president was not pleased with the prevailing governing framework in which ministers of states were just ministers in name”.

This, Tinubu reportedly said, led to the “underutilisation of the expertise and capabilities” of most ministers of state.

“The president believes ministers of state should have the right to make decisions and direct action within their areas of responsibility,” the official added.

The source said the idea — first mooted by Hadiza Bala Usman, special adviser to the president on policy coordination and head, central delivery coordination unit — got an instant buy-in from the president.

With the new directive, the administration hopes “to unleash” the potential of all the ministers, the source added.

Tinubu’s cabinet is made up of 48 ministers, but 16 of them are junior.

Ministries with ministers of state are: agriculture and food security, defence,education, FCT, foreign affairs, health, petroleum (oil), petroleum (gas), humanitarian and poverty reduction, and women affairs.

Others are: works, regional development, labour and employment, finance, trade and investment, and housing and urban development.

Anambra State Governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, has stated that Nigeria is undergoing a fundamental and disruptive reset, following the removal of subsidies by President Bola Tinubu.

Soludo made this remark during Veritas University’s 13th convocation lecture in Abuja, on Thursday.

The lecture, titled ‘Let Us Make a New Deal for Nigeria’, explored ways to address the country’s challenges.

Soludo noted the need to transition from subsidies, which largely benefitted the urban elite, to a productive social contract that creates opportunities for all.

He explained that the country has ended the harmful fuel, foreign exchange, and electricity subsidies.

“We have entered a ‘muddling-through’ phase that requires careful navigation,” Soludo said.

He acknowledged that, despite other issues, the military regimes invested in education during Nigeria’s early oil booms.

Soludo urged Nigerians to craft a pragmatic new deal for the country, as well as an emergency national infrastructure plan, similar to the United States Marshal Plan used to rebuild Europe after World War II.

He encouraged Nigerian leaders to draw inspiration from the marshal plan to implement public works projects, financial reforms, and regulatory changes that could transform the nation.

He also highlighted positive signs, such as the minimum wage legislation, the draft tax reform bill, and planned cash transfers.

He called for historic coordination between federal and state governments to ensure swift implementation of these reforms.

Soludo urged the graduating students to actively contribute to the country’s future.

He said, “The future you seek is in your hands. Only those who plan can control the future. While Nigeria may not have given you much, you are expected to give more than you have received.”

He encouraged them to participate in shaping the nation’s destiny.