Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has said that the much talked-about prospects of wage increments for the Nigerian worker remain a mirage despite prolonged pledges and flowery words by the government.
Atiku, who said this in an International Workers Day message to Nigerian workers on Monday, noted that as they join their counterparts across the world to celebrate International Workers Day, “it is a sobering truth that the plight of the Nigerian worker remains dire.“
He expressed sympathy with Nigerian workers, stating that they have not had it so bad with government policies skewed against their welfare.
According to the 2023 PDP presidential candidate, “After the contraction and contradictions by the government about whether the subsidy regime has gone or it is still being implemented, the country is today facing the angst of frustration by Nigerians who waste precious man-hours in queues at petrol stations across the country.
“The petrol subsidy is purportedly gone; yet its impact lingers – revealing the ineptitude of the current federal government.
“In an unprecedented manner and condescending of both the Nigerian worker and the general public, this current federal government announced a unilateral removal of subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit without consultations with representatives of the Nigerian worker.
“The continued increase in tariffs in different service offerings without addressing the corruption and inefficiencies in the system only amounts to long-suffering Nigerians subsidizing the corruption and inefficiencies in the system,” he said.
May Day: Workers’ welfare remains mirage – Atiku