Following the lingering discussions on a new minimum wage for Nigerian workers, organised labour has said that it is not fixated on any figure.
The tripartite committee on minimum wage ended its deliberations last week, submitting two figures to President Bola Tinubu for consideration as the new minimum wage.
While the government and the organised private sector are proposing ₦62,000, organised labour is demanding ₦250,000 as the new minimum wage.
However, the President of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Festus Osifo, who was a guest on Channels Television’s breakfast programme, The Morning Brief on Friday, said no figure is sacrosanct as there is always room for adjustments.
“What we said is that for us when we give figures, there is always a room to meander, there is always a room for us to do some adjustment here and there,” Osifo said.
“So, there is no figure that is sacrosanct, there is no figure that is cast in stone that both parties will be fixated on it. One of the reasons that we went on industrial action the last time was because when it got to N60,000, they told us that a kobo cannot even join the N60,000, that they cannot even add one naira to it.
“So that was one of the reasons that led to that industrial action beyond the fact that there were also delays.”
President Tinubu is expected to send an executive bill to the National Assembly for legislative action.
The TUC President said that they are not going to pre-empt the President, but they are making all efforts to justify why Tinubu should tilt towards the figure presented by the labour instead of the one by the organised private sector and the government.
He said that if the President send a figure that is not favourable to the labour to the National Assembly, they will still approach the lawmakers and push them to do much more.
Osifo vowed that the work of the labour leaders will not end until the Minimum Wage Act 2024 becomes law. He said it is premature to predict what labour will do if what is passed is not acceptable to them at the end of the day.
Meanwhile, President Tinubu has said that he will only approve a new minimum wage that the government can afford.
He stated this on Wednesday at a dinner to mark Nigeria’s 25 years of unbroken democracy in Abuja.
“I have to celebrate with you my dear brother, Senate President, Deputy Senate President,” he said, adding that Senate President Godswill Akpabio and his deputy, Jibrin Barau would soon get an Executive Bill from him on the new minimum wage.
“The minimum wage is going to be what Nigerians can afford, what you can afford and what I can afford. Cut your coat according to your size, if you have size at all,” he said.
Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo, says he pities President Tinubu if he approves an “unsustainable” minimum wage for workers in the country.
The former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) warned that not all state governments and the organised private sector can pay the ₦62,000 proposed by the Federal Government and the ₦250,000 demand of organised labour.
Soludo spoke on Wednesday at The Platform Nigeria, a programme by Lagos-based church, Covenant Nation, to mark 2024 Democracy Day.
“But on the other hand, you have to come back to reality, talking about these MSMEs, the schools, churches, so on and so forth. You will have to pay your own driver. We are all in it. Whatever they agree, we will muddle through but may be after one year, we will need to meet to discuss the consequences.”
“I pity the President because it will all be on his head if the consequences come down, whatever it is, if whatever is negotiated is unsustainable or payable or whatever. Months to come, who will bear the responsibility? Not me.”
The discussions for a new minimum wage has lingered for months, with the tripartite committee ending with the two figures last week.
While labour dropped its earlier demand from ₦494,000 to ₦250,000, the government added ₦2,000 to its initial ₦60,000 and offered workers ₦62,000.
Both sides submitted their reports to the President, who is expected to make a decision and send an executive bill to the National Assembly to pass a new minimum wage bill to be signed into law by the President.
A Soldier, Private Utim Terwase, has bagged a monetary reward of N500, 000 for turning down a bribe of the same amount, from a suspected kidnapper,
The reward is in recognition of his honesty and commitment to duty.
The soldier, who reportedly rejected the money offered in exchange for the suspect’s release, has been rewarded with N500,000 by the Commander of Operation Enduring Peace (OPEP), Maj. Gen. Maxwell Dangana.
Terwase was said to have apprehended the suspect following an attempted escape. When the suspect allegedly offered him N500,000 to secure his freedom, the soldier turned down the offer and handed him over to the appropriate authorities.
Impressed by his conduct, Dangana approved a cash reward equivalent to the amount he had refused to collect, describing his action as an example of the integrity, discipline and professionalism expected of military personnel.
The development was disclosed in a statement issued at the weekend by the Media Information Officer of the Joint Task Force, 3 Division, Nigerian Army, Rukuba Barracks, Jos, Capt. Chinonso Polycarp Oteh.
Presenting the reward through the Commander of Sector 6, OPEP, Col. Philimon Malgwi, Dangana said Terwase’s decision to resist the temptation of personal gain reflected the highest standards of military professionalism, loyalty and commitment to duty.
He said the soldier had demonstrated that his responsibility to the nation and the values of the military were more important than personal financial benefits.
According to him, the commendation is intended to encourage other personnel to uphold similar standards of honesty, accountability and selfless service.
Oteh said the reward also sent a strong message that integrity and professionalism remained values worthy of recognition, particularly at a time when corruption continued to undermine public trust.
He described Terwase’s action as proof that integrity was a personal choice, even when faced with temptation.
“A soldier who refused N500,000 in dirty money has earned N500,000 in honour. Indeed, integrity pays,” he said.
A Kano State High Court on Friday sentenced Umar Auwalu and Yakubu Dayyabu, to death by hanging for the gruesome murder of a housewife, Fatima Abubakar, 35, and her six children at Dorayi Chiranchi Quarters, Kano.
The court also sentenced the two convicts to life imprisonment with hard labour each for conspiracy and armed robbery.
The third defendant, Isyaku Yakubu, 21, of Sabon Gida Sharada Quarters, was, however, discharged and acquitted for lack of credible evidence linking him to the murder.
Justice Nasiru Saminu found the two person guilty of the two count charges filed against them, insisting the prosecution proved charges against them beyond reasonable doubt.
Justice Saminu described the killing of the housewife and her six children as a horrific crime that challenged the conscience of the society.
He said the victims were entitled to the protection of their home but were attacked by people who ought to have protected them, particularly as the first defendant, Auwalu, was a nephew of the deceased.
Justice Saminu lamented that seven lives, which could have grown into responsible members of society, had been permanently lost.
“How I wish there is a punishment heavier than this. My emphasis is not to administer vengeance but justice,” the judge said.
On the third defendant, Justice Saminu held that although there were telephone conversations between him and the first and second defendants, the prosecution failed to establish the contents of the conversations or demonstrate that they amounted to conspiracy.
The judge further noted that evidence before the court showed that Isyaku was attending a Qur’anic graduation ceremony at the time of the incident.
Earlier, the prosecution counsel and Attorney-General of Kano State, Abdulkarim Kabiru-Maude, told the court that the defendants committed the offences on January 17, 2026, at about 11:30 a.m. at Dorayi Chiranchi Quarters, Kano.
He said the defendants allegedly conspired, armed themselves with sticks, iron rod and a sharp cutlass before trespassing into the residence of Fatima. According to him, they robbed the deceased of two mobile phones, an Infinix and an Itel, as well as N200,000 in cash.
The Attorney-General told the court that the defendants attacked Fatima with sticks and iron rod, hitting her on the neck before striking her head with a sewing machine, which resulted in her death.
He further alleged that the defendants attacked her six children, identified as Maimuna, 17; Aisha, 16; Bashir, 13; Abubakar, 10; Faruk, seven; and Abdulsalam Haruna, a toddler, with sticks, knives and cutlasses, inflicting injuries on their faces, bodies and heads.
The prosecution said Faruk and Abdulsalam were subsequently thrown into a well within the premises after the attack.
During the trial, Auwalu pleaded guilty to the charges but denied throwing the children into the well, while Dayyabu and Isyaku pleaded not guilty.
The prosecution presented eight witnesses and tendered 30 exhibits, including medical reports from Murtala Muhammad Specialist Hospital, Kano, confessional statements, a bloodstained broken iron rod, a stool, bloodstained trousers, N200,000 cash, two mobile phones and a flash drive containing audio-visual recordings.
The prosecution maintained that the offences contravened Sections 97, 221 and 298(c) of the Penal Code.
President Bola Tinubu says all funds recovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) will be channelled into the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).
The president spoke on Friday at the launch of Arise Palm Resort in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom state capital.
Tinubu said the decision was informed by the need to ease the burden of tuition fees on parents and ensure equal access to education for all Nigerians.
“I feel your pain and share in the difficulty, and that’s why I decided to take away the responsibility of tuition fees from parents and equal opportunities for everyone who wants to read, taking education as the greatest weapon against poverty,” he said.
“And creating opportunities for those who are still coming behind. From today on, as we are fighting corruption, any money recovered by EFCC will be dumped into that education programme. It will be. No one can reverse it.”
On August 19, the president directed the EFCC to channel all recovered funds into NELFUND.
Tunji Alausa, minister of education, announced the development while answering questions from State House correspondents shortly after the weekly federal executive council (FEC) meeting that day.
He said the FEC also approved the allocation of all unclaimed dividends in the Capital Market Trust Fund and funds in the Dormant Account Trust Fund to the student loan scheme to expand its reach and improve its efficiency.
Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja on August 31 to highlight the commission’s achievements under his leadership, Ola Olukoyede, EFCC chairman, said the federal government had allocated N100 billion from funds recovered by the anti-graft agency to the student loan scheme since 2024.
He noted that when “recovered criminal value” helps finance education and household credit, enforcement moves beyond punishment to restoration and productive national use.
CBN Debunks Fake Circular on New ₦5,000 and ₦10,000 Notes
Championing the People’s Voice: Obasa’s Dedication to Grassroots Representation By Dave Agboola⁰
President Tinubu Directs Cut in Dialysis Cost from ₦50,000 to ₦12,000
Indian Police Arrest Nigerian Over ₦290m Drug Haul
Dangote Refinery Reduces Petrol Gantry Price To ₦1,200 Per Litre
After Plea Bargain, Court Discharges Stella Oduah of ₦2.5bn Fraud
Dangote; We Did Not Fix ₦600/Litre Petrol Price
NELFUND Disburses ₦86bn To 449,000 Beneficiaries
