News
N30,000 National Minimum Wage started April 18 ― FG


BY: Oliseama Okwuchukwu
The Federal Government of Nigeria has said that no governor in the 36 states of the Federation will say that he will not pay the new minimum wage of N30, 000.
Senator Chris Ngige, Minister for Labour and Employment, who stated this in an interview in Abuja, weekend, maintained that payment of the new wage started from April 18, when President Muhammadu Buhari signed the Minimum Wage Amendment Act Bill into law.
The Minister said that it had become imperative that all employers of labour in the country should comply with the law which he said was a national law, adding that a committee was working out a new template for upward consequential adjustment for those already earning above N30,000.
Describing the negotiation for a new minimum wage as a tortuous one, he advised employers of labour especially those who have not started implementation of the new law to do so in order to avoid accumulating arrears.
He said, “It is a national law and no governor can say he will not pay. Issue of national minimum wage is item 34 on the exclusive legislative list of the third schedule of the Nigerian constitution.
“Issue of labour is also there and not on the concurrent list. If it is on the concurrent list, then they can make their own state Assembly laws on that. Every state government is now owing workers if they have not start paying N30,000.
“They (employers) are owing workers effective from 18th of April, a new minimum wage. We are now in a committee working out a new template with which we will adjust upward the consequential adjustment upstairs for those already earning above N30,000.
“The minimum wage is for the most vulnerable down the ladder and that is the man on grade level one step one. So, you must consequentially adjust for the man on grade level two, grade level three, grade level four and five, because that man on GL 1 step 1 has over taken them with his new payment.
“That is what we refer to as consequential adjustment. This consequential adjustment touches more the people on the lower ladder and we are working it out. The negotiation is going to be with the Joint Negotiating Council in both the federal and at the state level.
“What we are trying to do now with the Salaries and Wages Commission is that we have a technical committee working out what the federal government will do for their workers and advice the state government appropriately.
“In 2011, there was a mistake in the consequential adjustment in some states when they applied the principle of percentage increase across board and they ran into trouble and were unable to pay. What this N30,000 translates into is that there is a 67 per cent increase.
“If a state government applies the same 67 percent increase across board, there will be serious trouble, the same with the federal government and when there is that trouble, there will be trade dispute because the principle of ability to pay will come in and ILO encourages us to apply those principle in our discussion.
“If I am unable to pay and my workers know that I am unable to pay, we will sit down and agree on what I am able to pay. So, there is a baseline now as no worker in Nigeria should earn anything less than N30,000 provided that the establishment has more than 25 workers.”
Asked when workers would begin to enjoy the new minimum wage, Senator Ngige whose office midwife the new wage said.”
They will enjoy it. Infact, they have started enjoying it. Employers in the private sector adjusted immediately because it is easier for them to do. In the government sector, the bureaucracy and bottleneck of government is responsible for the delay.
“You know that you must budget for it. That is what is causing the delay. But whenever the encumbrances are removed, they will pay arrears with effect from 18th April, 2019.
“So, the sooner an establishment start paying, the better for you so that you don’t take a huge backlog that you cannot take.
If you pay in piecemeal and start going, the better. So, i advice all employers of labour in Nigeria, including state government to immediately set up their Joint Negotiating Councils so that whatever we get from here, we give it to them and they will look at it based on their peculiarities.
“There are no two states that are the same in terms of the revenues coming from the federations account and internally generated revenue. So, when the template from the federal level is given to you, you put it on the table with the Joint negotiating Council and discuss how it suits you and cue into it as much as possible with the finances available to you.
“Luckily, today, finances of states are known. Everybody know what the state is coming from FAAC with. The IGR of most state governments are also known now. So, it is a pleasant situation that we are all in now.”
On the recent allegation by the NLC that he was frustrating the implementation of the new minimum wage, he said, “I saw the NLC President on Television saying so. But that was when they were trying to picket me and I pitied him because he was trying to blackmail me in the wrong direction. “I am the prime mover of the new minimum wage.
If you ask anybody in the Federal Executive Council, they will tell you so and the President will also tell you so and he has said so many times. So, the President of the NLC is playing politics. But he can’t play politics on workers like that.
If he wants to play politics, he should leave labour unionism because the Labour laws do not allow labour leaders to play partisan politics.” Reminded that the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU had threatened to resume strike if the federal government refused to implement the agreements it entered into with the union, Ngige said that he had made it compulsory that every government establishment kept to any agreement.
One of the things that as often led to unrest and strike in the country, especially among government workers is the inability of government to implement signed agreements with Unions. Right now, ASUU are spoiling for another round of strike.
He said, “I have forced government establishments to keep to agreements, especially the ones that we entered into now. Where we have difficulties is the 2009 and 2013 agreements that the then government made. But nobody wants to know that.
“They will tell you that government is a continuum. So, as much as possible, we try to renegotiate some of these agreements to make them realistic. The ILO principles permit that CBAs that are not feasible can be renegotiated. That is the luck we have and in this Ministry, we have used it to the best of the advantage of the government.
“That is why today, if you go to the Industrial Arbitration Panel, they are complaining that cases no longer come. We are taking the bullets here and not putting some there. I have read through cases that go there and discovered that when cases go there, employers are not satisfied and still go to the National Industrial Court and to Court of Appeal.
“As they are doing that, you have spate of industrial actions because once the worker finds out that you are trying to frustrate them from getting what they believe is theirs, they will find ways of declaring new dispute. So, now that we are here, we have told government the truth. I insist and bring government officials here for negotiation.
“I don’t take officers for negotiation. The best we can do is for a Minister to come for the first two meetings and then delegate his Permanent Secretary and this has worked.
Ministers are Chief Executives of the Ministries and are the ones who will take the major decisions and do a memo to Mr. President saying we need this and that. When they do that I collaborate it and they get the necessary funds.”
Source: Vanguard


… GFD Executive Director emerges chapter Vice Chairperson*
The Lagos State Chapter of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) has elected a new executive council at the close of its flagship Lagos PR Fest 2025, reinforcing its commitment to professionalism, innovation, and societal impact.
In elections supervised by NIPR Registrar, Chief Uzoma Onyegbadue, Samuel Ayetutu emerged as Chairman, while Eniola Mayowa was elected Vice Chairman in a closely contested race.
Other members of the executive include Secretary Samuel Adeyemi, Assistant Secretary Rita Ali-Nock, Public Relations Officer Ogochukwu Okeke, Financial Secretary Bassey Nta, Treasurer Olabamiji Adeleye, Welfare Officer Funmilola Akintola, and Ex-Officio Provost Marshal Quadri Adeleke.
In his acceptance remarks, Ayetutu pledged to drive professional standards, promote inclusiveness, and foster collaboration among members to enhance the chapter’s influence locally and nationally.
This year’s PR Fest, themed “Urban Farming for Food Security: The Role of Communication”, convened communication professionals, policymakers, and stakeholders to explore innovative strategies for tackling food security through effective public engagement.
Over the years, the Lagos PR Fest has evolved into a leading platform for advancing the role of public relations in societal development, with the 2025 edition underscoring the Institute’s mission to position communication as a driver of sustainable development in Nigeria.
News
Nigeria dismantles terror groups, Ansaru and Mahmuda, with the capture of their leaders
BY Sandra Ani


Nigeria has recorded a significant breakthrough in the war against terrorism with the capture of the leaders of Ansaru and Mahmuda.
At a press briefing on Saturday evening, the National Security Adviser, Malam Nuhu Ribadu, said the two terrorists on the wanted list of Nigeria, the US, UK and UN were captured in an operation which was conducted between May and July 2025.
He said the men were captured in a high-risk, intelligence-led, counter-terrorism operation which led to their capture. They are leaders of Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina fi-Biladis Sudan, commonly known as ANSARU, Nigeria’s Al-Qaeda affiliate.
Ribadu said the two men have been responsible for masterminding many terrorist attacks against Nigeria over the past years.
According to Ribadu:
“The first is Mahmud Muhammad Usman (aka Abu Bara’a/Abbas/Mukhtar), the self-styled Emir of ANSARU. He is the coordinator of various terrorist sleeper cells across Nigeria. He is also the mastermind of several high-profile kidnappings and armed robberies used to finance terrorism over the years.
“The second is Mahmud al-Nigeri (aka Mallam Mamuda), Abu Bara’s proclaimed Chief of Staff and Deputy.
He is the leader of the so-called “Mahmudawa” cell hiding out in and around the Kainji National Park, straddling Niger and Kwara States up to Benin Republic. Mamuda trained in Libya between 2013 and 2015 under foreign jihadist instructors from Egypt, Tunisia, and Algeria, specialising in weapons handling and IED fabrication.
“These two men have been on Nigeria’s most-wanted list for years. They jointly spearheaded multiple attacks on civilians, security forces, and critical infrastructure. Their operations include the 2022 Kuje prison break, the attack on the Niger uranium facility, the 2013 abduction of French engineer Francis Collomp in Katsina, and the May 1, 2019 kidnapping of Alhaji Musa Umar Uba (Magajin Garin Daura). They were also behind the abduction of the Emir of Wawa and they maintain active links with terrorist groups across the Maghreb, particularly in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.
“The two men, who are wanted internationally, are currently in custody.
“The capture of Abu Bara and Mallam Mamuda, the group’s leader and deputy commander, respectively, marks one of the most significant achievements to date in our ongoing effort to rid Nigeria of the threat of terrorism. The successful decapitation of the leadership of this dangerous franchise marks the most decisive blow against ANSARU since its inception. This strike has effectively dismantled its central command while paving the path for the complete annihilation of the group”, Ribadu said.
The Ansaru group was first formed in January 2012 with a public declaration in Kano. It emerged as a splinter faction from Boko Haram, positioning itself as a “humane alternative.” However, its stated aim quickly turned to attacking Nigerian security operatives, civilian communities and government infrastructure. The group publicly displayed the setting sun logo of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), signalling its ideological and operational alignment with global jihadist movements.
“Over the years, Ansaru entrenched itself in both urban sleeper cells and forest enclaves across several cities in northern Nigeria and in forest-based enclaves, particularly around Kainji National Park, straddling Niger and Kwara States, as well as the Benin Republic”, Ribadu explained.
News
France Urged to Address Colonial Legacy as Senegalese Activists Call for Reparations in Dakar Roundtable
Reporter: Sandra Ani


France’s colonial legacy came under renewed scrutiny as journalists, historians, and pan-African activists gathered at African Memorial Square in Dakar for a powerful roundtable advocating reparations and economic justice.
The event highlighted growing demands for France to take full responsibility for its historical role in Senegal and across West Africa.


Organized by advocacy groups including the Association of Descendants of Senegalese Soldiers, the Front for the Withdrawal of French Military Bases (GASSI), and JIF’AFRIK, the roundtable brought together influential voices pushing for reparatory justice and structural transformation.
Among the key speakers were Babacar Dioh of the Thiaroye 44 Movement—a coalition of descendants of Senegalese tirailleurs—and Souleymane Jules Diallo, leader of JIF’AFRIK. Discussions centered on two central demands: official reparations for colonial-era injustices and the urgent renegotiation of trade and military agreements that activists say perpetuate economic dependence.
“The time for symbolic gestures is over,” said Dioh. “We are now filing an official reparations claim and taking concrete steps to hold France accountable.”
Speakers called for the dismantling of existing neocolonial frameworks, stressing the ecological, financial, and social harm that has endured beyond the colonial period. The roundtable marks a turning point in Dakar’s positioning as a hub for coordinated African-led advocacy aimed at restoring historical justice.
This event adds momentum to a growing continental movement seeking tangible reparative action from former colonial powers and reinforces the call for equity, autonomy, and acknowledgment of historical truths.
-
Health5 days ago
Optometry in a Changing World: Adapting to Emerging Trends
-
GRBusiness5 days ago
Borno State Launches Industrial Hub Management to Boost Trade, Investment
-
Culture5 days ago
African Union Declares 2025 the ‘Year of Reparations and African Heritage’ and Launches Decade-Long Action Plan
-
TechNews3 days ago
Samsung Launches Vision AI TV: A New Era in Home Entertainment, Celebrating 19 Consecutive Years as the Global No. 1 TV Brand
-
CampusLife1 day ago
Samsung Unwraps the Sleek, Durable Galaxy A07 in Nigeria
-
Transport1 day ago
In an Epic Move, Gov Mbah Inaugurates 5 Ultramodern Bus Terminals, Rolls Out 100 Mass Transit CNG Buses Across Enugu
-
News1 day ago
Nigeria dismantles terror groups, Ansaru and Mahmuda, with the capture of their leaders
-
GRTech5 hours ago
Glo reduces international call rates