ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – Chris Ngige, Nigeria’s Minister of Labour and Employment, has said the Federal Government of Nigeria will hand over the implementation of petrol subsidy removal’s palliative measures to the incoming administration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Ngige stated this at the State House in Abuja during the weekly ministerial briefing organized by the Presidential Communication Team.
The Minister of State, Budget and National Planning, Clement Agba, had, on 15 March, said no conclusion had been reached on how to lessen the likely impacts of the proposed fuel subsidy removal on the citizenry, Daily Post reports.
Ngige had said a committee headed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo had been working on palliatives for about a year though nothing had been agreed upon.
But Ngige said: “The subsidy palliatives will be left to the incoming government to implement. We’ll simply hand over to them.
“Of course, we’ll give recommendations which they’re at liberty to either accept or reject.”
He also said the economy suffered in 2015 and 2020 due to the recessions, adding that unemployment in Nigeria had more than quadrupled since 2015.
Ngige said also that the incoming administration should consider the blueprint on Job Creation Office under the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
He said his ministry was collaborating with United States Labour Department to stop child labour, saying that “They make available $75m to fight poverty in cocoa and minerals producing areas in Nigeria.”
He also noted that the issue of pay rise for the Nigerian workers was being addressed, adding that the quantum of money for the pay rise was the issue.
The Minister said the amount to be paid would be based on the availability of funds and the ability to pay.