AbdulRazaq Urges Tinubu to Raise Minimum Wage to N100,000

Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State has called on President Bola Tinubu to consider increasing Nigeria’s national minimum wage from N70,000 to N100,000.

AbdulRazaq made the appeal on Friday during a meeting between President Tinubu and state governors at the president’s residence in Lagos. Speaking as chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), he praised Tinubu for removing fuel subsidy, describing the move as a courageous decision that only a few politicians would have dared to make.

The governor revealed that state governments had initially anticipated public unrest following the subsidy removal and had mobilised security agencies in preparation for possible protests.

He recalled that despite fears of widespread demonstrations, including concerns linked to the #EndBadGovernance protests, no major riots or protests occurred after the policy was implemented.

According to AbdulRazaq, the removal of subsidy has significantly improved states’ financial conditions. He said many states now receive better allocations from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), enabling them to pay salaries and execute projects without borrowing or issuing bonds.

Using Kwara as an example, he explained that after salary payments, the state is still left with between N100 million and N200 million from FAAC allocations.

The governor also stated that several states already pay workers around N100,000 as minimum wage, above the current statutory N70,000 benchmark.

He urged Tinubu to begin discussions on raising the national minimum wage to at least N100,000, expressing confidence that governors would receive presidential backing for its implementation.

President Tinubu had signed the current N70,000 minimum wage into law in June 2024, replacing the previous N30,000 approved under former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019. The law provides for a review of the minimum wage every three years.