Human Rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has called on the Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi, to prosecute any state government that refuses to comply with the payment of the minimum wage.
Falana emphasized that failure to comply with the payment of the minimum wage constitutes a violation of the law, as it is a voluntary agreement.
He further stated that when a new minimum wage agreement is reached, it automatically becomes a legal requirement.
According to him, the Federal Government, along with the Attorney General, is responsible for taking legal action against any state government that fails to fulfil this obligation.
“I mean, the attorney general can just file a new case, which is a good development, by saying over the years, we have accused state governments of diverting monuments for local governments,” Falana said during an interview on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Tuesday.
The removal of fuel subsidy and the fluctuation of the naira have led to an increase in demands for a new minimum wage, as the cost of living has soared in the country.
Despite numerous meetings, the Federal Government and organized labour, including its central bodies, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), have yet to reach a consensus on the new minimum wage.
This has resulted in workers going on strike on Monday, halting economic activities across vital sectors.
However, Falana believes that with the removal of the subsidy, states now have more financial resources at their disposal and cannot use a lack of funds as an excuse for not paying the minimum wage.
“There is no state in Nigeria today that cannot pay more than the minimum wage because the government removed fuel subsidy last year and told Nigerians that the money made from that policy shall be [paid to state governments]”, the legal practitioner said.
He stressed that state governments will be compelled to pay the minimum and he is pushing for the deduction of workers’ salaries from the source.
