Oyo State Governor, ‘Seyi Makinde, has announced that his administration will begin paying the N70,000 minimum wage once the issue of consequential salary adjustment is resolved. He made this declaration during the 2024 World Teachers’ Day celebration, held on Saturday at the NUT (ENDWELL) Model College Sports Complex, Owode Housing Estate, Apata, Ibadan
During his speech, Governor Makinde also extended the N25,000 wage award to workers and the N15,000 wage award to pensioners for another three months. This extension, according to the governor, will cover the period while negotiations on the consequential salary adjustment are ongoing. The wage awards will cease once the negotiations are completed and the N70,000 minimum wage is implemented.
Makinde said: “On the minimum wage, negotiations will start next week, and we will pay the N70,000 minimum wage. But the consequential adjustment is about to be negotiated. The NLC and our team will sit down to discuss it.”
The governor expressed his gratitude to the teachers for their support during his re-election campaign and for their contributions to the development of the state. He assured them that his administration remains committed to prioritizing the welfare of teachers and all civil servants to ensure they continue to be productive. Education, he emphasized, remains one of the key pillars of his government.
“I want to say kudos to the teachers. Everywhere I went during the campaign, you mobilized yourselves and supported us wholeheartedly. So, I appreciate you and I say thank you. We are going through challenges as a country. We have issues with minimum wage and fuel prices, but I want to appeal to you to say that tough times don’t last, but tough people do. We will outlast these challenges we are faced with.”
The governor also highlighted the importance of education to national development, stressing that his government would continue to focus on improving education infrastructure to ensure teachers can work in a conducive environment.
“Any country that wants to develop must educate her people. So, for us in Oyo State, we will continue to specially look after our teachers, because they are dealing with our future. You teachers, you have to be put where you belong. So, I thank you for your support and dedication to duty. We still have a long way to go.”
Makinde pointed out the significant gap in educational infrastructure, estimating that the state would need about N70 billion to close the gap. Despite spending approximately N3 billion annually through UBEC grants and matching funds over the past five years, the governor noted that this was insufficient.
“When we came in, with the UBEC grant and matching fund we used to give them, we were spending about N3 billion every year on infrastructure. So, for the past five years, we have done about N15 billion, but it is not enough – just like a drop in the ocean. The gap we have to fill, when we did the analysis a few years ago, it was around N40 billion, but I can tell you now that it will be close to N70 billion.”
To address this, the governor revealed plans to set aside a minimum of N10 billion annually in education intervention funds to bridge the infrastructural gap in the state’s education sector. He also committed to hiring more teachers and creating a conducive learning environment for students to guarantee better educational outcomes.
Makinde further emphasized his administration’s dedication to infrastructure development beyond education, particularly in fixing inner roads within the Owode Housing Estate.
The governor’s remarks followed the commissioning of a block of 10 classrooms built by the NUT at the NUT Model School. He reiterated his government’s commitment to fixing inner roads within the estate.
In his welcome address, the NUT State Chairman, Comrade Raji Ismail, praised the governor for his remarkable achievements in the education sector and for prioritizing teachers’ welfare. Ismail thanked Makinde for initiatives such as career progression for primary school teachers, regular salary payments, promotions, leave bonuses, and healthcare insurance.
Similarly, the Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Oyo State, Comrade Kayode Martins, expressed confidence that the governor would fulfill his promise to implement the minimum wage as expected.
