EIGHT-YEAR SCORECARD: WORKERS LAMENT HARDSHIP, SCORE BUHARI, GOVERNORS LOW ON WELFARE

As the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) marks his last May Day in office today, labour unions have scored the regime and state governors low, saying they pauperised workers and inflicted hardship on Nigerians.

They lamented the galloping inflation in the country which they said had eroded the 40 per cent pay rise recently approved by the Federal Government with effect from January.

Last week, the government paid the 40 per cent increase in allowance to various categories of federal workers but labour leaders said the pay rise had been lost to inflation.

The Consumer Price Index reported by the National Bureau of Statistics in March 2023 indicated that Nigeria’s inflation rate accelerated to a new 17-year high of 22.04 per cent.

According to the World Bank, Nigeria has one of the highest inflation rates globally and the seventh highest in sub-Saharan Africa in 2022.