ABIA: PDP candidate promises N90,000 minimum wage, vows to recall 15,000 sacked workers

By Dickson Omobola

Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, governorship candidate in Abia State, Kelechi Anosike, has vowed to increase the minimum wage in the state to N90,000 if elected, saying he will introduce a welfarist system that would enable families unable to pay school fees to do so.

Anosike also lamented the taxation burden in Abia, saying he would review the tax collection system and charge the rich to service the poor.

He made the promises on The Morning Show, an Arise TV programme, where he said the 15,000 workers sacked before their time would be recalled.

His words: “Let me first tell Abians the political ideology with which we have come and what we intend to do for the state. I am a welfarist, and we have developed a welfarist philosophy and manifesto. For us, the whole essence of government is to serve the people. Without the people, there is no government. At the centre of governance is the people. That’s why we say the people of Abia first. I believe in the good of all mankind, and that’s what we are bringing on board.

“We developed about eight welfarist political philosophies. One of them now is workers’ welfare. As a welfarist, we play by the rules. If the rules say if you get to 60 years, you retire, or if you get to 35 years of age, you retire. If you don’t reach those milestones, we will not retire you. That’s why I told Abians that those 15,000 workers sacked before their time, we will recall them. Because behind every sacked worker is a family struggling to feed.

“We say we will pay a minimum of N90,000. The national benchmark is N70,000; we will do N90,000 minimum wage. With that said, we’ll restore the dignity of the civil service. A situation where directors are using tricycles to go to work, we’ll stop it. We will get it back to what it used to be. You get official cars for directors and for magistrates.

“Within 100 days in office, about three months, we’ll clear all allowances, all pensions, all gratuities. If the rule says that if you are promoted from level 12 to 13, you get your promotion allowance, once we promote you, that allowance should follow you.

“If the rule says that if you apply for annual leave, you get your leave allowance, the moment you are proceeding on annual leave, the leave allowance should follow you. So, we believe that every worker is entitled to his wages. We believe in the motivation of the entire workforce.

“We believe in education and skills. Skills that create opportunities. I said there will be a degree and a skill. Never again will anyone graduate without a skill. There should be a skill and an entrepreneurship grant for those students who have learned skills and want to start a business. The government will give them grants to start a business.

“We will set up a traders’ microfinance bank, headquartered in Aba. There’s a programme we call Operation Feed Abia. Operation Feed Abia. It’s a back-to-farm state policy. If you are eating one meal a day, you will eat three square meals a day.

“There is really excessive taxation going on in Abia. I will not tax a truck pusher. The woman selling akara is being taxed about N500 to N1,000 per day. In seven days, it is N7,000. When you multiply that by 30 days and 12 months, she is being paid close to N300,000 for selling akara. We will review the tax burden, collect from the rich to service the poor.”

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