The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, has revealed details of the agreement reached between organized labour and President Bola Tinubu before accepting the N70,000 minimum wage during negotiations at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
Speaking during Arise TV’s *Morning Show* yesterday, Ajaero explained that during the discussions on a new minimum wage, organized labour rejected a proposal to increase the price of petroleum in exchange for the N70,000 minimum wage. He also disclosed that after reaching an understanding with the President on the use of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) as an alternative, labour negotiated with a team of experts who agreed to convert vehicles to CNG for N300,000. However, when they met with government officials, the officials rejected this deal, announcing instead that the conversion would cost N800,000.
Initially, the NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) had demanded N250,000 as the new minimum wage, but later accepted the President’s offer of N70,000.
When asked if the President had betrayed the trust of the NLC by raising the petrol pump price despite their agreement, Ajaero responded: “Let me explain the situation, and then we can decide whether it was a betrayal, deceit, or something else. During the negotiations, we stalled at N62,000, with some states refusing to pay, which led us to meet with the President. We insisted on N250,000, and the President said to me, ‘Ajaero, you’re the one holding me back from raising prices further.’ I asked, ‘Raising what?’ He replied, ‘Since I removed the subsidy, we should have adjusted the price. I should have raised it. I want to sponsor you, labour leaders, to visit West African countries to see how much they are paying—some are paying N2,000, N1,800, or N1,700.’ We immediately declined the offer of sponsorship.”
He continued: “The President then said, ‘I’ll go to my office for an hour. You can decide. If you agree to a price increase, I’ll approve a N250,000 minimum wage. If not, you’ll have to accept N62,000.’ But we responded, ‘Mr. President, we can’t make that decision here in your office. We need about a week to consult and come back to you.’ That’s exactly what happened, and we adjourned for a week. When we reconvened, we made it clear that we didn’t have any mandate to negotiate the price of petroleum products. We were only there to discuss the minimum wage, and based on that, we accepted N70,000.”
In a follow-up interview with *Saturday Vanguard*, Ajaero expressed that workers were frustrated by the recent hike in fuel prices and criticized the President for taking such action without proper consultation.
He explained: “The acceptance of the N70,000 minimum wage was contingent on the President not increasing the pump price of fuel. If he went ahead with the hike, then we must discuss the consequences because N70,000 cannot address the current situation.
“We’ve seen about a 70% increase in fuel prices, and this is significantly impacting transportation costs. Moreover, there are no CNG buses in operation yet. Before making such a decision anywhere in the world, you consult your social partners. If you look at the impact on employers, manufacturers, and the organized private sector regarding production costs, it becomes clear that this issue needs to be renegotiated. The way forward is to reverse the price hike because workers are now questioning whether they can even afford to get to work. Governance should be about the people, not just raising electricity tariffs, fuel prices, or taxes. It needs to involve all arms of government and must be negotiated properly.”
