2027: Kebbi NLC defends Gov. Idris worker’s welfare policies, rejects Malami’s promises

From Ola Muhammad, Birnin Kebbi

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Kebbi State Council, has defended the workers’ welfare policies of the administration of Governor Nasir Idris and insisted that such incentives of the government has shown genuine commitment to the interests and conditions of service of workers in the state.

State NLC Chairman, Comrade Murtala Usman, stated this while briefing newsmen in Birnin Kebbi in reaction to the Independence Day address delivered by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) governorship candidate, Abubakar Malami, (SAN)

Usman acknowledged the commitments contained in Malami’s address, including proposals on minimum wage, promotions, pensions and gratuities, transportation, healthcare, housing, retirement age and workers’ participation in governance.

He, however, said the union could not accept sweeping allegations suggesting that Kebbi workers were generally suffering because the state government had failed to pay pensions, implement promotions or unlawfully deduct workers’ salaries.

The NLC chairman stressed that trade unionism was founded on facts, evidence, negotiation, collective action where necessary and institutional engagement, rather than unverified political claims.

According to him, “trade unionism is not conducted through rumour. It is conducted through evidence, negotiation, collective action where necessary, and institutional engagement.

“Let the political contest be about who can deliver better conditions of service, not about who can make the loudest allegation. Let candidates present implementable programmes, not merely attractive promises. Let workers judge the record, policies and capacity to implement them,” the NLC chairman said.

Usman said the NLC had maintained continuous engagement with the Kebbi State Government since Governor Nasir Idris assumed office in 2023 on issues affecting workers and their conditions of service.

According to him, the engagement has been conducted through collective bargaining, social dialogue, consultation and negotiated settlement of industrial disputes.

He explained that the union had consistently presented workers’ demands to government, with several issues already addressed, while others remained subjects of ongoing discussion and negotiation.

Usman said the state government had approved and implemented a minimum wage of N75,000, which he noted was above the then N70,000 national minimum wage benchmark.

He described the implementation as a significant response to workers’ demands, while stressing that it did not mean the struggle for improved welfare, purchasing power and better conditions of service had ended.

“With inflation and the rising cost of living, the NLC will continue to demand further improvements in workers’ purchasing power and conditions of service,” he said.

The NLC chairman also acknowledged Malami’s proposal to pay workers a minimum wage of N110,000 if elected governor in 2027, but said such political promises should be assessed against their cost, funding arrangements, sustainability, implementation mechanisms and timelines.

“Announcing a higher figure during an election campaign is easy. But the real test is the capacity and willingness to negotiate, fund, implement and sustain such commitments when in government,” Usman said.

He maintained that workers deserved policies that could be realistically implemented and sustained, rather than promises based solely on attractive figures and campaign rhetoric.

Usman listed several interventions by the present administration, including the completion and equipping of the state Secretariat, implementation of the N75,000 minimum wage, and the regular payment of salaries, pensions and gratuities.

He also cited the payment of responsibility allowances to primary school teachers, the recruitment of 2,568 health workers and the employment of 2,000 qualified teachers as measures taken by the administration to strengthen the state workforce.

The NLC chairman further said the government had extended the retirement age of teachers, medical doctors and veterinary doctors from 60 to 65 years, while increasing the period of service from 35 to 40 years.

He said the administration had also invested substantially in the health sector through the renovation and revitalisation of general hospitals and primary healthcare centres, recruitment of additional health personnel and the absorption of GAVI personnel into the state payroll.

In the education sector, he said the government had rehabilitated 320 junior and senior secondary schools, constructed 30 new junior secondary schools and 18 senior secondary schools, while more than 2,000 desktop computers had been supplied to 100 schools.

He added that the administration had implemented the new minimum wage structure for staff of the Kebbi State University of Science and Technology, Aliero (KSUSTA) and the Kebbi State Polytechnic, including consequential salary adjustments for KSUSTA staff.

The NLC chairman, however, emphasised that the interventions recorded by the administration did not eliminate the legitimate demands of workers, noting that the union remained concerned about inflation, declining purchasing power, promotions, allowances, career progression, pensions, gratuities and other conditions of service.

“We are not blind to the challenges confronting workers. We know that the purchasing power of workers has been weakened by inflation and the rising cost of living,” he said.

Usman reiterated the NLC’s independence and non-partisan position, stressing that the union would neither become an appendage of government nor an instrument of political opposition.

He said the union would continue to negotiate with government, commend positive interventions, demand improvements where necessary, challenge government whenever workers’ rights were infringed, and mobilise workers lawfully whenever collective action became necessary.

The NLC chairman therefore urged Malami and other political actors in the state to base their campaigns on verifiable facts and programmes that could be realistically implemented for the benefit of workers and the wider society.

“If there are genuine cases of workers whose salaries have been unlawfully deducted, whose promotions have not been implemented, or whose pensions and gratuities remain outstanding, let the evidence be presented,” he said.
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