ATIKU ASKS TINUBU TO INCREASE MINIMUM WAGE

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has called on President Bola Tinubu to increase Nigeria’s N70,000 minimum wage, arguing that rising costs of fuel, food, transportation and housing have reduced workers’ purchasing power.

Atiku made the call in a statement issued on Sunday by the Director of Strategic Communications of the African Democratic Congress Presidential Campaign Council, Phrank Shaibu.

He said the current minimum wage was no longer sufficient to meet the needs of Nigerian workers amid rising living costs.

The Federal Government increased the minimum wage from N30,000 to N70,000 in July 2024 following negotiations with organised labour. Tinubu had said the wage would be reviewed after three years.

Atiku argued that the increase had not adequately protected workers from inflation and rising petrol prices.

He also criticised the removal of the petrol subsidy, saying it had increased pressure on households without sufficient measures to protect working families.

The former vice president said that if elected in 2027, his administration would begin work on raising the wage floor from its first day in office.

He also proposed measures aimed at reducing the cost of living, including support for domestic production, targeted social protection and interventions in the petroleum sector.