Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has urged President Bola Tinubu to immediately increase Nigeria’s ₦70,000 minimum wage, arguing that rising living costs have significantly weakened workers’ purchasing power.
Atiku made the demand in a statement issued on Sunday, September 27, by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communications of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council.
He said the statutory wage increase had failed to shield workers from escalating expenses, particularly the rising cost of petrol, food, transportation and accommodation.
The Federal Government increased the national minimum wage from ₦30,000 to ₦70,000 in July 2024 following negotiations with organised labour. Tinubu had said at the time that the wage would be reviewed after three years.
Atiku, however, argued that the economic conditions confronting workers had changed significantly since the new wage was introduced.
He illustrated the erosion of purchasing power by comparing fuel prices under the old and current wage regimes.
“At N1,400 a litre, the entire N70,000 monthly minimum wage buys just 50 litres of petrol. What does the worker take home to feed the children? What pays the rent? What gets that worker back to work on Monday?” the statement queried in part.
According to Atiku, the national average petrol price in April 2023 stood at ₦254.06 per litre, meaning that ₦30,000 could purchase approximately 118 litres at the time. By comparison, ₦70,000 at ₦1,400 per litre would buy only about 50 litres.
“The payslip has grown, but the fuel it can buy has more than halved. Tinubu has given workers a larger number and left them with a smaller life. That is hardship dressed up as a wage increase,” he added.
His intervention comes amid renewed concerns over petrol prices and the broader cost-of-living crisis. Recent reports have put petrol prices at around ₦1,400 per litre in Lagos and Abuja, with some parts of northern Nigeria recording higher prices.
Atiku also criticised the removal of the petrol subsidy, arguing that the policy was introduced without sufficient measures to protect vulnerable households and workers from its consequences.
“The government pulled away the floor, offered workers a flimsy umbrella and now applauds itself while the rain beats down on them,” Atiku said.
He maintained that the effect of petrol prices was not limited to motorists, noting that higher transportation and energy costs ultimately affect food production, distribution and other household expenses.
READ ALSO:Atiku, Saraki Hail Oyedepo At 72
“Petrol does not stay at the pump. Its price follows the farmer to market, enters the baker’s oven and appears in the fare a parent pays to take a child to school,” he stressed.
The ADC candidate also compared Nigeria’s minimum wage with wages in some other African oil-producing countries, using the exchange rates cited in his statement. While acknowledging differences in wage structures and living costs across countries, he maintained that ₦70,000 was inadequate under prevailing economic conditions in Nigeria.
Atiku consequently challenged the Federal Government to make its position on another wage adjustment clear, arguing that workers should not be left in prolonged negotiations without a definite commitment.
“If he has no intention of raising workers’ pay, he should say so plainly and stop stringing the Nigeria Labour Congress and other labour leaders along. Nigerian workers deserve an answer, not another round of meetings that ends where it began,” he added.
He also outlined what he said would be his approach to wages and living costs if elected president in 2027, promising to begin work on raising the wage floor from his first day in office.
“I will begin the work of raising the wage floor from my first day in office,” Atiku assured.
Beyond wages, he promised measures to reduce pressure on households through increased domestic production, targeted social protection and interventions in the petroleum sector.
He said his proposed targeted production subsidy would support petroleum products refined domestically and sold to Nigerians, with spending limits, public accounting and independent auditing.
“Government support must produce measurable relief at the pump,” he said.
Atiku further called for measures to stabilise the prices of essential goods and energy, arguing that increasing salaries alone would not sufficiently address household hardship if the cost of living continued to rise.
The Tinubu administration has defended the ₦70,000 minimum wage, noting that the figure emerged from negotiations with organised labour and other stakeholders. The Presidency had also said the new wage was intended to provide immediate relief, with a review scheduled after three years.
Atiku, however, maintained that the purchasing power of workers should remain the central measure of the effectiveness of any wage increase.
“Nigerians do not eat FAAC figures. A full treasury is no answer to an empty kitchen. The test of this government is whether the men and women who work all month can live on what they earn.
“A living wage must buy a living. It is not a privilege; it is a basic right.
“Tinubu has made life painfully expensive. I will make life affordable again,” he added.