Subsidy Removal: NULGE Canvasses 300% Pay Rise For Workers

The national president of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees(NULGE), Alh Ambali Hakeem yesterday called on the federal government to increase the civil servants salaries by 300 percent across board.

He said only the approval of such an increment in workers salaries could adequately cushion the effects of the fuel subsidy removal.

Hakeem who spoke with newsmen in Ilorin, Kwara State also urged the federal government to revisit the issue of local government autonomy, arguing  that autonomy for local government will boost service delivery at the grassroots.

He added that local government autonomy would enhance adequate security and pave the way for financial autonomy, thereby ensuring meaningful development at the grassroots.

He suggested the introduction of alternate means of energy, through the use of natural gas for vehicles.

Hakeem also advised  the government to cut down the cost of governance as well as direct those that benefited from the subsidy regime to refund the money to the government.

Hakeem said that the money realised from such could be reinvested in the education sector and make primary to secondary education free while tertiary education would be subsidized.

He urged  the government to deploy and subsidise mass buses to ease transportation challenges for the masses and also subsidize agriculture input for adequate food security as part of measures to cushion the effect of subsidy removal.