The minimum salary that was initially suggested by the Federal Government at a meeting of the tripartite committee on minimum wage in Abuja on Tuesday was increased by N3,000 to N60,000.

During the most recent minimum wage conference, organised labor—which includes the Trade Union Congress and the Nigeria Labour Congress—also reduced their request by N3,000 from N497,000.

Labour leaders were not pleased with the sum that the government had suggested, according to a source who provided the breakdown during the meeting on Tuesday.

A member of the union who spoke to our correspondent before the meeting started noted that organised labour would only go lower if the government went higher on its demands.

“This is simply a case of if they go higher, we will go lower. They need to propose something reasonable for us to propose something lower too. There is no two-way about it.

“Also, we have a way of meeting as members of the Labour before each committee meeting. This will help us to take a uniform stand by the time we get to the meeting front.

“So as long as the government is ready to present something reasonable, we will meet them in the middle,” the labour leader said.

More to come…

In a move that has sparked both nostalgia and controversy, the Nigerian Senate passed a bill to revert to the country’s old national anthem, “Nigeria, We Hail Thee”.

The bill, which was passed on Tuesday, now awaits assent into law by President Bola Tinubu.

The old anthem, which was introduced in 1960, was replaced with the current one, “Arise, O Compatriots”, in 1978.

The move to revert to the old anthem has been met with mixed reactions, with some Nigerians hailing the decision as a return to the country’s rich cultural heritage, while others have expressed concerns about the implications of such a change.

More to come…

The naira depreciated at the parallel section of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Monday.

Currency dealers, often referred to as bureau de change (BDC) operators, put the value of the naira at N1,520 to the US dollar at the Lagos street market.

With a N30 profit margin, the dealers set the buying price of the dollar at N1,490 and the selling price at N1,520.

The amount shows a N10, or 0.66 percent, decrease from the N1,510/$ transacted on May 24.

On the official market, however, the value of the naira increased on Monday from N1,482.81/$ on May 24 to N1,339.33/$, or 9.6%, higher.

According to FMDQ Exchange, a platform that oversees official FX trading in Nigeria, during trading hours, N1,501/$ was the highest exchange rate and N1,310/$ was the lowest.

At the official window, a daily turnover of $180.80 million was recorded.

The Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), on May 23, said the weakening of the naira is caused by the unearned income pursuing the local currency and not due to demand for the dollar.

Aminu Gwadabe, president of ABCON, also said corruption, not BDCs, is responsible for the depreciation of the naira.