Abdulsalami Abubakar, the former Military Head of State, has expressed dissatisfaction with the current N30,000 minimum wage in Nigeria, deeming it unacceptable given the country’s present reality. During a speech at the inaugural Peace, Unity, and Reconciliation Summit organized by the Taraba Independent Peace Committee in Jalingo, he urged President Bola Tinubu to consider a wage increase. Represented by Rev Fr Atah Bakindo, the head of the secretariat of Kukah Centre and National Peace Committee, Abdulsalami argued that the N30,000 minimum wage is insufficient for meaningful human development anywhere in the world.
In his plea, Abdulsalami emphasized the urgent need for a wage hike to foster national growth and improve living standards. He encouraged Nigerians to leverage the resources within their regions to enhance their quality of life. The former Head of State highlighted the inadequacy of the current minimum wage and stressed that such a low figure cannot contribute to the development of individuals or the nation as a whole.
“I want to plead with the Nigerian president that the N30,000 national minimum wage cannot take Nigerians anywhere. It is not acceptable anywhere in the world, and it cannot develop anybody; there is an urgent need to increase wages for the betterment of our growth.”
“I want to urge the people of Taraba State to reconcile whatever kind of difference that created clashes and disunity. You cannot harness any development if you are not in peace and unity. You are fortunate to have the natural resources; peace and unity are the only bedrock of development,” he emphasized.