Human rights activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has outlined how a future administration under his leadership would finance a proposed ₦500,000 national minimum wage for Nigerian workers.
Speaking through a statement posted on his social media platform, Sowore argued that Nigeria possesses sufficient financial resources to provide workers with a decent living wage but is hindered by corruption, wasteful spending, and poor management of public funds.
According to him, critics frequently question the feasibility of a higher minimum wage while overlooking what he described as excessive government spending on political activities, allowances, and the lifestyles of public office holders.
Sowore maintained that substantial public funds currently directed toward political interests and non-essential expenditures could be redirected to improve workers’ welfare and social services.
The activist also criticised the practice of governments holding large sums of money while citizens continue to face economic hardship, unemployment, inadequate healthcare, and challenges within the education sector.
He rejected claims that increasing workers’ wages would be impossible or automatically trigger inflation, insisting that the real challenge lies in governance priorities rather than a lack of resources.
“Nigeria does not suffer from a shortage of money but from corruption, greed, and misplaced priorities,” he stated.
Sowore further argued that if governments can fund major political projects and maintain expensive bureaucracies, they should also be able to guarantee better living conditions for workers.
He concluded by reaffirming his support for a ₦500,000 minimum wage, describing it as a necessary step toward improving the welfare of millions of Nigerian workers and reducing economic hardship across the country.
