BY SAM EYOBOKA & OLAYINKA LATONA

SEVEN days to the planned strike by organized labour to force the implementation of the N18.000 new minimum wage, religious leaders have described the reluctance of state governors to pay as selfish and insist that governors have the resources to pay the new wage.

The clergymen faulted the governors push for removal Petrol subsidy to pay the new wage dully passed by the two arms of the National Assembly and signed into law by the President Goodluck Jonathan and advised the governors to save the nation from avoided industrial crisis.

The clergymen faulted the governors push for removal Petrol subsidy to fund the new wage bill less than three months after the April 2011 general elections, describing it as diversionary and attempt by the governors to further impoverish the Nigerian masses.

In separate interviews with Labour Vanguard, National President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, former

Rev. Chris Okotie

CAN National Vice President, Bishop Mike Okonkwo, former General Secretary of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN, Bishop Joseph Ojo and the presidential candidate of Fresh Democratic Party, FDP, Rev.Chris Okotie urged the governors to stop their crusade for subsidy removal and look for funds to pay the minimum wage without any further delay.

Speaking, Pastor Oritsejafor said it was amazing that people who, a few weeks ago traversed every nook and cranny canvassing for the people’s votes with promises to alleviate the pains of the masses of the nation, were today canvassing for the removal of oil subsidy. He said, “I am not a politician and so may not fully appreciate the inner workings of the minds of politicians, but I have interacted with millions of lowly placed people across the country and know that even the N18, 000 minimum wage cannot solve the problems of people dwelling in urban centres of the country.

“I can only urge the governors to pay the minimum wage that has already been signed into law by the president, or they will be running counter to the laws of the country and that, in itself, is not palatable especially as we trying to build a solid democratic culture in the country.” Similarly, Bishop Okonkwo said the governors had no choice than to pay the agreed sum to the workers who had been at the receiving end of several years of mismanagement and misapplication of the nation’s resources.

According to the Bishop who heads The Redeemed Evangelical Mission, TREM, the current agitation for removal of oil subsidy was ill-timed and uncalled for, “because the motive behind the call is obvious to everybody despite efforts by the governors to justify their action.

They should go ahead and implement to law was passed by the National Assembly and signed into law by the president before they will be perceived as lawless persons.” On his part, the erstwhile PFN secretary, Bishop Ojo described the call for removal of subsidy as satanic, saying that the governors must first deregulate their own pockets before calling for total deregulation of the oil sector.

“They should first purge themselves and remove the subsidy of their fat earnings and security votes before calling on the Federal Government to remove oil subsidy, because the Bible says; ‘you must first remove the log on your eyes before you can remove the peck on the other person’s eyes’ Bishop Ojo advised, adding that “their call for removal of oil subsidy will not make the desired impact.

Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor

In the same vein, Reverend Okotie, who contested the last presidential elections, would rather blame the ruling party, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for the current face-off, arguing that “why should Labour threaten to go on strike if there has been an understanding between the Government of the day and Labour as to the minimum wage.

It is nothing to do with the Nigerian people; it is click of a minute members in the PDP who cannot be trusted, that are holding the nation to ransom. I encourage the Government to consider the plight of the Nigerian people and pay the money. There is enough money in the country to even pay a minimum wage of N50, 000 a month.”

“This is one of the reasons the Nigerian people continue to suffer untold hardship in the hands of PDP government. Things cannot continue like this for too long, because very soon there will be divine intervention and the Nigerian people will be delivered from governmental insensitivity of the PDP ruling machine which cares for only a few members of the clique.”