African Action Congress presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has pledged to introduce a N500,000 monthly living minimum wage for Nigerian workers if elected president in the 2027 general elections.
Sowore, an activist and publisher of Sahara Reporters, unveiled the proposal while outlining the AAC’s plans for the 2027 election in an interview with Independent published on Sunday.
Beyond wages, he said an AAC-led government would pursue 24-hour electricity supply, free and accessible education at every level, the construction of one million public mixed-income homes and reforms to tenancy laws aimed at ending the burden of paying rent years in advance.
“Our agenda is revolutionary justice and equal rights. Nigeria is enormously wealthy, yet Nigerians have been deliberately impoverished through corruption, incompetence and an economic system designed to reward a tiny political and business elite. We intend to change that fundamentally.
“We are proposing a ₦500,000 monthly living minimum wage because Nigerian workers cannot continue receiving starvation wages while senators, governors and political appointees consume millions every month.
“We will deliver 24-hour electricity because no serious industrial economy can operate permanently on generators. Education will be free and accessible at all levels, and no Nigerian child should be denied education because his or her parents are poor.”
Sowore also outlined plans to address housing and healthcare, saying, “We will embark on the construction of one million public mixed income homes while reforming tenancy laws so that working people are not forced to pay one or two years of rent in advance. Healthcare must become a right, not a privilege reserved for people who can afford medical tourism.
We will industrialise Nigeria, massively expand agricultural production and processing, rebuild infrastructure and create dignified employment.
“We will reform policing and security, properly compensate security personnel and deploy modern technology, including drones and advanced intelligence systems, to confront insecurity.
“We will wage an uncompromising war against corruption and recover public resources stolen by political officeholders. Nigeria’s wealth must work for Nigerians.”
Sowore was among the 18 presidential candidates formally announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission on Saturday for the 2027 election.
He said the AAC would finance its campaign through a “people funded campaign”, rather than depend on wealthy individuals or political patrons.
Explaining the ideological position of the party, Sowore said Nigerians were “more ready than ever” for a leftist government, arguing that successive capitalist administrations had failed to tackle poverty and inequality.
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“Our socialism is practical. It means the wealth produced by society must improve the lives of the people who produce it. It means universal education, healthcare, decent housing, electricity, living wages and social protection.
“It means workers deserve dignity. It means Nigeria’s natural resources belong to Nigerians rather than a handful of politically connected billionaires.
“After decades of capitalist governments producing spectacular wealth for a few and devastating poverty for millions, Nigerians do not need another lecture about why this failed system should continue. They need an alternative, and AAC represents that alternative.”
The AAC candidate also criticised the economic policies of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, saying an administration led by him would reverse what he described as the philosophy underpinning the current policies.
According to Sowore, the success of his proposed economic programme would be measured by whether it improves the material conditions of Nigerians.
On the security situation surrounding the 2027 campaign, he said he would insist that security agencies act professionally while exercising his constitutional rights.
“I have never asked Nigeria’s security agencies for favours. I demand professionalism. Police officers, soldiers and intelligence personnel are employees of the Nigerian people. They are not private security guards belonging to a president, governor, minister or ruling political party.
“I have been arrested, detained, prosecuted and attacked under different governments, so intimidation is not new to me. But there is an important lesson from those experiences. Resistance works.”
Sowore further promised to improve the welfare of security personnel and strengthen the professionalism of the country’s security institutions if elected.
He became the AAC’s presidential candidate for the 2027 election after emerging through a consensus selection process.
Although he recorded low votes in his 2019 and 2023 presidential bids, Sowore maintained that the AAC’s prospects for 2027 had “never been better”.
He attributed this to the party’s independence from political godfathers, governors and wealthy patrons, adding that its campaign would be driven from the grassroots.
According to him, the party’s structures would extend across wards, polling units, communities, campuses, markets and workplaces.