Sule: Governors Ready to Pay New Minimum Wage 

* Says Nasarawa is safest state for agriculture, investment

* Meets Shettima ahead of lithium factory inauguration on Friday

Deji Elumoye in Abuja 

Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State on Wednesday revealed that governors are not opposed to a new minimum wage for public workers, dismissing claims that governors are not cooperating with the government at the centre on the issue. 

There had been great concerns in some quarters recently over the ability of many states to pay the new minimum wage to be proposed by the Tripartite Committee on Minimum Wage. 

Speaking to newsmen on the issue after meeting with Vice-President Kashim Shettima in his office at the State House, Abuja, the governor also said he discussed the security situation in his state with the vice-president.

Sule, who said he was unaware of any state where the government was unable to pay the old minimum wage rate, stated that Nasarawa has been paying the N30,000 minimum wage since 2019 and has also implemented promotions, gratuities and other benefits for workers.

While explaining that governors have not disagreed on matters around plans to review workers’ pays, he stated that a committee established by the Federal Government is working on the minimum wage, and governors are waiting for the outcome.

According to him, “We’re concerned about the welfare of the workers. In fact, we’re paying some special allowances called hazard allowance, even to our medical workers, as I’m talking to you right now. So I don’t think governors have any problem with the payment of minimum wage. I don’t speak for the governors. Our chairman, the Governor of Kwara, actually speaks for the governors and he will do that at the right time to you. 

“But it is incorrect, actually, to say that governors are not interested or are not cooperating. What the governors keep saying is that there is a committee established by the Federal Government to work on the minimum wage. 

“We are waiting for the outcome of that committee and that committee is not just looking at Federal Government, it’s looking at the state government and organized private sector. So by the time they provide, we don’t want to jump the gun and that’s why we continue to do that. 

“You may find one or two states make certain statements, which is okay perfectly in line. Minimum is minimum, when they say minimum wage, it doesn’t mean that somebody cannot be higher than that, dependent on your own cash flow and dependent on your own position. So, I think that’s the position.”

Commenting on the security situation in the state, Sule assured Nigerians that Nasarawa State is safe for investment and agriculture, contrary to concerns about security, citing the example of a lithium factory built by foreign investors, which took several years to complete and is now operational.

Explaining that Nasarawa is the safest state in the country for agriculture and other activities, he attributed the success to improved security in the area, thanks to the construction of major roads and the establishment of a military super-camp. 

To support his claim, the governor highlighted the state’s achievements in agriculture, including being number one in sesame farming, number two in yam and cassava production, and number five in rice production nationwide. 

He encouraged skeptics to verify these facts for themselves.

He said: “Coming back to the issue of security that you have mentioned, it took us a while to be able to stabilize the area. First and foremost, they had a very bad road leading to the areas where some of the bandits, kidnappers and so on were settling down. 

“We now constructed a major road in the area and the Federal Government also constructed the major road that comes all the way from Benue into Nasarawa State, which most of the transporters from the eastern part of the country are actually using at the moment. 

“We also established what you call military super-camp in the area so there is presence of the military in the area. So all those kidnappers, bandits and others have all left, we don’t have any as far as that area is concerned. 

“Nasarawa State is always considered as one of the safest states to do agriculture and others things. Now, coming back to the agriculture that you have mentioned, since the past two to three years, Nasarawa State has been leading in so many areas of agriculture. 

“Today, I’m happy to tell you that we are number one in sesame farming in the whole federation, nobody does more than that. We’re number two a yam production throughout the country. We are number two in cassava throughout the country and we are number five in rice production. 

“So if people are not going to farms, we’ll not be achieving these kinds of numbers. These are the realities on ground, these are things that you can go and find out on your own. So as far as we are concerned, we’re not saying that there are no kidnappings in Nasarawa, from time to time you’ll find it here and there, but in Nasarawa State there is also oil drilling going on. With the oil drilling, I don’t think any of you has ever heard anything about kidnapping and things like that taking place”.

On the purpose of his visit to the vice-president, Sule disclosed that he met with Shettima to discuss the upcoming inauguration of a lithium factory sited in the state on Friday, expressing optimism that President Bola Tinubu would be present at the event. 

His words: “I came to see him for two major issues: we’ve been doing a lot in the area of agriculture, which he has taken upon himself to ensure that things are going well, so he’s been monitoring that on his own. So from time to time, we visit and we discuss on the areas of agriculture, which is of great importance to him.

“I came also to discuss about the inauguration of the lithium factory that we’re having on Friday. As you know that this Friday we’re going to inaugurate a 4,000 metric tons per day lithium processing factory, which he has always been interested in knowing the outcome of what is happening. 

“So we came to discuss that and part of the preparations. In fact, we’re hoping Mr President himself will be coming to inaugurate that factory.”