Bismarck Rewane, chairman of the
presidential technical advisory committee on the implementation of the national
minimum wage, says the battle in Nigeria is “between the poor and the very
poor” as the number of the rich is insignificant.
In an interview with Saturday
PUNCH, the economist explained that there is income inequality and this is also
responsible for the growing security challenges in the country.
“Nigeria’s growth at two per cent
is below population growth rate and employment requirements. Therefore, we are
in a vicious cycle of poverty — a race to the bottom. So, we should stop all
these things and see how we can grow,” he said.
“In Nigeria, I think it is
between the poor and the very poor. So, there is nothing like ‘rich’ in Nigeria
because the rich are so few that they don’t even count. It is a battle between
the poor and the very poor. After the very poor, you have those living in
abject poverty. It’s a race to the bottom.
“It’s like a snake pit. In other
words, nobody can come out of it. There is a battle for survival. If you’ve
ever read the book, ‘Animal Farm’, that’s what it is. Because there is economic
insecurity, it leads to social insecurity, which means that you are now reduced
to your animalistic instincts in your battle for survival.
“So, there is income inequality
and opportunity equality. But opportunity and income inequality are meaningless
if there is no (economic) growth. When we now grow at the rate that can
transform our lives, then you will see that the struggle and this battle —
herdsmen (attacks) and so on — will reduce.”
He added that a state-by-state
comparison of Nigeria’s performance showed that states where the economy is
doing well, the economic impact is always negative because of social conflict.
He advised the government to
shift its policies from the complications of distributing inadequate resources
to how to grow the economy so that more resources and opportunities were
available to the masses.
In January, President Muhammadu
Buhari appointed Rewane to chair the committee to develop, and advise the
government on how to successfully bring about a smooth implementation of
impending wage increases.
Following submission of the
committee’s report, Buhari in Thursday
signed the national minimum wage bill into law.
The senate had passed the bill on
March 19, approving N30,000 as the new national minimum wage.
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