Minimum Wage: Who Should Make Sacrifices, Governors Or Workers?

It seems that in Nigeria, the poor get poorer and the rich only become more rich and gain more privilege. Ebuka Onyekwelu, the Naij.com columnist, inquires why state governors say they cannot pay their workers even the minimum wage while themselves leading lavish and entitled lifestyles.

No doubt the continuous plunge of our crude oil price in the international market and the increasing exchange rate of naira against the dollar have automatically affected fundamentally the monthly allocations to the states such that the states no longer get up to the amount they used to.
Of course, the problem is Nigeria’s almost sole dependence on oil. The other problems at the root of this situation is the existence of unviable states and the non-federal, or what some people now call faulty federal system and structure in Nigeria. These are the problems we are very familiar with and conceivably well-acquainted with the consequences of continuing to manage a problem that is better solved from the basis.
That said, the problem has perhaps gone out of control following the fall of crude oil price which has trimmed down Nigeria’s income and the allocations to states. The natural, I mean, the obvious thing to do is to make amends. Right now, it will be impossible to attempt to solve the root causes, particularly, restructuring our federal construction as penance to the shortage of funds because, possibly, it will take years to be fully addressed and implemented therefore it will not yield immediate result which is of essence. So any amend in this direction will take us deeper into more troubling situations before eventually solving the problem.
What other option do we have? The situation calls for sacrificial amends and rightly so. We all understand the situation and we have to make sacrifice for the continuous existence and well-being of our states. But, is the indirect call by the governors on workers to sacrifice part of their (minimum) wage in good conscience? Is that option even moral or correct from any and all viewpoints?

Who should make sacrifices, governors or workers?

Before the minimum wage was reviewed upwards, it took Nigerian labour unions years of protest and strikes. There grew an accepted enmity between the government and the unions. It was like a real war. Then, eventually, it ended in the favour of the workers.
From thence, some governors have shown much concern explaining the inability of their respective states to meet up with the pay while others accepted it. Some governors made some reforms according to agreement with their state labour unions, in which while the minimum wage was not strictly adhered to, the prevailing minimum wage was however reviewed upwards.
We can deduce therefore that not all states in Nigeria adhere strictly to the minimum wage review. The point here is that at no time have all or even most governors agreed to pay or comply with the ₦18,000 minimum wage.

Surviving on ₦600 a day

Now, to the contentious minimum wage, which is but ₦18,000, an amount that when divided by thirty days amounts to ₦600 per day. That amount is, to say the least, not enough for a full-grown adult to take care of self and meet daily needs. To think that some families depend on that same amount to make ends meet leaves one trying to solve the puzzle on how they do it. What other sacrifice does one expect of people living in this condition? So in a way, it is clearly a kind of inhumanity against fellow man to keep placing a demand on him to make all the sacrifices. That is against fairness and natural justice.
Nigerian governors are some of the wealthiest Nigerians for several reasons, specifically because of the funds they control in their respective states. State governors live profoundly extravagant lives regardless of unfavourable economic trend. All Nigerian state governors have security votes running into tens of millions, sometimes hundreds of millions, the dwindled allocation does not affect that.
Our governors move in convoys of numerous cars, the majority of which are very expensive sports utility vehicles. Nigerian governors do not pay house rent as they live in government lodges or are accommodated at the expence of the state. No governor in Nigeria fuels the cars he uses with his own money. The generators in the government lodges, feeding and all other expenses are run with state funds. They receive allowances for virtually everything, including recharge cards for phone calls.
In other words, our governors are the true beneficiaries of government subsidies. Even though this is elegantly illogical, it is the reality. In Nigeria, for some reasons, the rich, affluent government officials who do not need any form of subsidy are the ones who have everything subsidized or, more succinctly put, given to them for free and… wait for it… as a right!
This is not just about governors living in lodges and not paying rent, but about certain pattern — the perception of the weaker members of the society, in this case the workers, as the ones who should make sacrifices and continue to. Can’t our governors lead by example? Can’t they put their security votes on the table? Can’t they surrender all those jumbo allowances? Can’t they reduce the number of cars in their convoys to, say, three and save serious costs? Can’t they ensure more probity with the funds in their coffers? Can’t our governors also source for ways to increase their internally generated revenue?
That is exactly where we should start from! By looking in the right direction and doing the needful. You will agree with me that before it gets to the point of workers surrendering their diminutive take home, the situation would have been firmly rounded up.

Author, Ebuka Onyekwelu

Ebuka Onyekwelu is a political scientist, a public affairs analyst and activist with concerted interest in Africa’s crisis of development and leadership. Follow him on Twitter @ebukaequity.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the original author. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of Naij.com, its editors or other contributors.
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