The ADC presidential candidate says rising petrol, food, transport and housing costs have eroded the value of the statutory wage.
Former Vice-President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar has called for an immediate increase in Nigeria’s N70,000 national minimum wage, arguing that rising living costs have significantly eroded workers’ purchasing power.
Atiku, in a statement issued on Sunday by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communications of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, also backed organised labour’s demand for a substantial increase in workers’ pay.
His call comes as pressure mounts for a fresh review of the minimum wage less than two years after it was raised from N30,000 to N70,000.
Atiku questions the value of N70,000 minimum wage
Atiku argued that the nominal increase in wages had not translated into a corresponding improvement in workers’ purchasing power, particularly as petrol prices have risen sharply.
He said that at a petrol price of N1,400 per litre, the entire N70,000 monthly minimum wage would buy only 50 litres of petrol.
By comparison, he said the N30,000 minimum wage could purchase about 118 litres when petrol averaged N254.06 per litre in April 2023.
The arithmetic in Atiku’s comparison checks out: N30,000 at N254.06 per litre amounts to about 118 litres, while N70,000 at N1,400 amounts to 50 litres. However, the comparison measures purchasing power against petrol alone and does not represent the full cost of living.
“At ₦1,400 a litre, the entire ₦70,000 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?” Atiku said.
He attributed the pressure on workers to the removal of the petrol subsidy, saying higher fuel costs had filtered through to transportation, food and other essential goods.
“The payslip has grown, but the fuel it can buy has more than halved,” he said.
Government has already signalled wage review
Atiku’s demand comes against the backdrop of an earlier acknowledgement from the Federal Government that the N70,000 benchmark may no longer reflect current economic conditions.
Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, said in June that the wage “must be honestly reassessed against today’s realities” and that the administration would approach the review process as a partner to organised labour.
The 2024 National Minimum Wage Amendment Act reduced the statutory review period from five years to three years. President Bola Tinubu had also assured labour leaders in July 2024 that the wage would be reviewed after three years.
No new minimum wage has yet been announced.
The renewed debate is unfolding as Nigeria’s headline inflation stood at 15.39 per cent in August 2026, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, while food inflation was 19.57 per cent.
Petrol prices have also come under renewed pressure. Reuters reported last week that petrol was selling at around N1,400 per litre in Lagos and Abuja, with prices reaching about N1,500 in parts of northern Nigeria.
Atiku cites wage levels across Africa
The ADC candidate also compared Nigeria’s minimum wage with those of other African countries.
According to figures cited by Atiku, using exchange rates from July 24, 2026, monthly minimum wages were equivalent to approximately N213,000 in Libya, N245,000 in Algeria, N302,000 in Equatorial Guinea and N351,000 in Gabon.
He also said the minimum wage in Benin Republic was higher than Nigeria’s when converted at the exchange rate he used.
Such comparisons, however, need to be treated cautiously because minimum-wage systems, exchange rates, taxation, employment structures and living costs differ significantly across countries.
Atiku argued that the differences did not change the pressure facing Nigerian workers.
“The Nigerian worker is the engine of this country’s productive life, yet Tinubu expects that engine to run without fuel,” he said.
He urged the President to approve a substantial wage increase that takes into account the cost of food, transport, rent and electricity.
The renewed wage debate now places the focus on how the government balances workers’ declining purchasing power with the fiscal implications of a higher statutory wage, as negotiations over the next review approach.
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Focus keyword: Nigeria minimum wage
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SEO title: Atiku backs higher minimum wage as N70,000 loses purchasing power
Meta description: Atiku Abubakar has called for a higher Nigeria minimum wage, saying rising petrol, food, transport and housing costs have eroded the value of N70,000.
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Legal/sensitivity flags: Political content. Atiku’s criticisms of the Tinubu administration are attributed. Cross-country wage comparisons are presented as figures cited by Atiku and should not be treated as directly comparable measures of living standards. No electoral recommendation or prediction.
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Atiku Abubakar has called for an immediate increase in Nigeria’s N70,000 minimum wage, arguing that rising petrol, food, transport and housing costs have eroded workers’ purchasing power.
He says N70,000 now buys only 50 litres of petrol at N1,400 per litre.
The Federal Government had earlier signalled that the wage is due for reassessment.
Read more.
This version keeps the stronger editorial-style questioning and context-building we agreed on, but because this is a political news story, I’ve kept the argument evidence-led rather than turning it into an editorial verdict.
