By Rotimi Ojomoyela – Ado-Ekiti

Activities at the Ekiti State House of Assembly were on a total lockdown for over three hours on Wednesday, following a peaceful protest by workers in the state over the contentious minimum wage.

The workers, comprised of members of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), were protesting the proposed plan by the National Assembly to remove the national minimum wage from the exclusive list to the concurrent list.

They paraded placards with various inscriptions, such as “removing national minimum wage from the exclusive list is a crime” National Minimum wage is our right” Do not decentralized workers wages” say no to minimum wage removal” “NLC, TUC on minimum wage we stand” “wage theft: criminal against humanity among others.

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In their separate remarks during the protest, the Ekiti State Chairmen of the TUC and NLC comrades Sola Adigun and Kolapo Olatunde respectively, said the protest is a national one to show their displeasure on the proposed bill before the National Assembly on the removal of the national minimum wage from the exclusive list to the concurrent list.

The labour leaders used the occasion to bemoan the Governors of some states in Nigeria whom they alleged to have been behind the move.

The workers threatened to embark on a national strike if the National Assembly should go ahead with the plan.

The labour also used the occasion to remind the Ekiti State House of Assembly to reinstate the 21-sacked workers from the assembly, who were shoved out of the system due to alleged irregularities in their appointments.

Responding, the Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Hon. Fuminiyi Afuye, commended the labour over the peaceful protest and promised to deliver the message to the governor.

Afuye, who stressed the need for the restructuring of the country, said the move would further make the federal system of government to be more efficient.

On the sacked staff of the assembly, Afuye disclosed that a committee has been set up to look into the matter, promising that the Committee will be reporting back to the assembly within the next week.

Vanguard News Nigeria