GOV. Chibuike Amechi of Rivers and the new chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) said on Friday that the ability of governors to pay the new minimum wage would depend on a new revenue formula.

Amechi said in Abuja at an interactive session with the media that governors were willing to pay the new wage but were constrained by finance. This, he said, was so because the monthly revenue allocation of most states could hardly sustain them through the month to ensure efficient and effective governance.

He added that the major issues before the forum was that of revenue allocation and the amendment of the constitution, adding that that was so because the issue of revenue allocation could not be dealt with without amending the constitution.

He said that governors had agreed to work in partnership with the President Goodluck Jonathan as; "the driver of the change in revenue allocation formula."

"We also agreed to partner with the Revenue Mobilisation and Physical Allocation Commission and the National Assembly on the issue of revenue allocation," he added.

"We are not against the new minimum wage payment but we are saying that if you want us to implement it, the money is just not there in the states.

"It is a bit challenging but I think that when we meet with the president, the National Assembly and the Revenue Mobilisation and Physical Responsibility Commission we will find a solution," Amechi said.

He said that it would be a great challenge for state governments to be able to pay the new minimum wage because of their present financial stance even though they were willing to pay.

"We are willing to pay, but they are trying to see how much they can negotiate with the Federal Government on issue of revenue allocation so that they can have more money to be able to pay," Amechi said.

According to him, some states receives as little as N2.5 billion as monthly allocation from the federal account while they were expected to pay as much as N4billion as minimum wage if they were to pay the new minimum wage.

"If you receive N2.5 billion as monthly allocation where will you get N1.5 billion to add to pay the new minimum wage.

"While we agree that it is a law and that we will have to pay, we are saying that you cannot pay what you do not have," Amechi said.

The NGF had earlier set up a six man committee headed by Gov. Babatude Fashola of Lagos State to look into the minimum wage issue.

The report of the committee had since been submitted and adopted by the 36 state governors who formed the forum's membership.