Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State has faulted the N70,000 minimum wage adopted by the Federal Government under President Bola Tinubu, saying whatever gains that will be made by raising the minimum wage will be wiped away by inflation.
Governor Diri, while speaking during a live media chat over the weekend in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital, stated that the value of the naira would have been stabilised before setting the minimum wage of N70,000 so that it will not be affected by the current high inflation.
The governor also advocated for dialogue as the best option to address issues in the country, rather than resorting to protest or violence.
According to him, Bayelsa has remained largely peaceful and secure because of the resolve of Bayelsans, particularly the youths, to key into the peaceful disposition of his administration.
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While acknowledging that protest was the constitutional right of every citizen, he, however, applauded people of the state for maintaining the peace, law and order, saying no meaningful development can take place in an atmosphere of rancour and violence.
He said: “On the new national minimum wage, my suggestion is that the value of the naira would have been stabilised before setting the minimum wage of N70,000, so that it will not be affected by the current high inflation.
“It is better to improve the value of our currency because whatever gains made by raising the minimum wage will be wiped away by inflation.
“Before August 1, l engaged with the youths, religious bodies and other stakeholders and maintained that dialogue was the best approach because we envisaged that the protest could be hijacked by persons that do not mean well for our state.
“The number one agenda of our administration is peace. There was too much of hatred in the polity. When we came on board, we first of all set out to unite our people. Today, l am happy to announce that Bayelsans are united more than ever before.”
Governor Diri also called on the federal government to do more by providing a permanent solution through building of dams to contain flooding, especially as the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMET), has predicted heavy flooding in some states.
He explained that the flood challenge of the state was not due to rainfall but that the rivers had become shallow and needed to be dredged.
He also stated that due to paucity of funds, the state government is unable to embark on capital-intensive projects such as building dam and dredging of the rivers.
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