Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the governor of Lagos, said he is ready to pay N85,000 as minimum wage for civil servants in the state, hoping to increase it to N100,000 by January.
This is N15,000 higher than the N70,000 minimum wage bill signed into law by President Bola Tinubu in July.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday, Sanwo-Olu said he will be paying N85,000 not to outdo other states but because Lagos has the capacity to do so.
“I am glad to let you know that the minimum wage for Lagos which we conversed and discussed with our union is N85,000 today,” the governor said.
“It is not a competition, so I am not going to say we are paying more than some other people, it is a function of affordability and it is a function of capacity, but we know too well that when people live in Lagos, Lagos has a premium in terms of even the cost of living, we are fully aware,” he added.
Sanwo-Olu said he wishes to increase the state’s minimum wage to N100,000 by January 2025.
“We actually increased salaries earlier in the year and deserving so for our staff and we will continue to do that.
“I would like to come back to you in January to say I have been able to increase the minimum wage of Lagos to N100,000 not because I want to make anybody look bad, it is really because I want my people to have a living wage, I want them to really be able to know that government is working for them,” he said.
States in Nigeria have begun implementing the approved minimum wage which was reviewed from N33,000 to N70,000 this year.
While some states have announced a review of their minimum wage, others are yet to put the legislation into effect.
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