Atiku backs labour demand for higher minimum wage, says N70,000 can only buy 50 litres of petrol

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has backed organised labour’s demand for a substantial increase in the national minimum wage.

Atiku spoke in a statement issued on Sunday by He spoke in a statement issued on Sunday by Phrank Shaibu, director of strategic communications of the ADC presidential campaign council.

The former vice-president said the current N70,000 minimum wage had failed to restore workers’ purchasing power as rising petrol, food, transport and housing costs continue to put pressure on household incomes.

Atiku accused President Bola Tinubu of presiding over what he described as a “ruthless economic squeeze” in which workers are paid more nominally but have less purchasing power.

He also criticised the removal of the petrol subsidy, saying it pushed up prices without adequate protection for working families.

“The government pulled away the floor, offered workers a flimsy umbrella and now applauds itself while the rain beats down on them,” Atiku said.

“Fuel, transport, food and rent have devoured their earnings. This is a callous way to govern people who work hard and ask only for the means to live.”

Atiku said the increase in the minimum wage from N30,000 to N70,000 had not kept pace with rising costs.

He compared the purchasing power of the two wage levels using petrol prices, saying N30,000 could buy about 118 litres at the national average price of N254.06 per litre in April 2023.

According to him, N70,000 can buy only 50 litres at N1,400 per litre.

Current petrol prices have risen to about N1,400 per litre in Lagos and Abuja, with higher prices reported in parts of northern Nigeria.

“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 said.

Atiku also compared Nigeria’s minimum wage with those of some African and oil-producing countries.

Using exchange rates from July 24, 2026, he said the equivalent monthly minimum wages were approximately N213,000 in Libya, N245,000 in Algeria, N302,000 in Equatorial Guinea and N351,000 in Gabon.

He added that even Benin Republic’s minimum wage was higher than Nigeria’s when converted using the same exchange rates.

Atiku acknowledged that wage structures and living costs differ across countries but argued that the differences did not make N70,000 adequate for Nigerian workers facing current prices.

“The Nigerian worker is the engine of this country’s productive life, yet Tinubu expects that engine to run without fuel,” he said.

He said the impact of higher petrol prices extended beyond filling stations because increased energy and transport costs affect farmers, food producers, businesses and households.

“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 said.

Atiku challenged Tinubu to immediately agree to a substantial increase in the minimum wage to reflect the cost of food, transport, rent and power.

“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,” he said.

Atiku also promised to raise the wage floor from his first day in office if elected in 2027.

He said his proposed economic measures would include support for Nigerian production, relief at the pump and targeted assistance for people affected by the cost-of-living crisis.

He also proposed a targeted production subsidy for petroleum products refined in Nigeria and sold to Nigerians, subject to a spending cap, public accounting and independent audit.

“Government support must produce measurable relief at the pump,” he said.

Atiku said increasing wages should be accompanied by measures to reduce living costs and stabilise the prices of essential goods and energy.

“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,” he said.

“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.”