N70,000 minimum wage overtaken by economic realities – Gbajabiamila

Femi Gbajabiamila, chief of staff to President Bola Tinubu has signaled readiness of the administration to reopen negotiations on the N70,000 national minimum wage, acknowledging that economic realities have outpaced the wage structure signed into law in 2024.

Gbajabiamila said on Thursday that the administration would approach the next wage review as a partner of organised labour, stressing that the N70,000 minimum wage approved in 2024 must be reassessed in light of current economic realities.

Speaking at the Working People United (WOPU) Good Governance Summit in Abuja, Gbajabiamila said the wage increase, which was considered a landmark achievement at the time, now requires a fresh evaluation amid rising living costs and changing economic conditions.

“The N70,000 wage, which was a milestone in 2024, must be honestly reassessed against today’s realities. President Tinubu has said time and again that the custodians of the nation’s machinery deserve a fair and commensurate wage. This is a president who means precisely what he says and does exactly what he means,” Gbajabiamila stated.

Gbajabiamila, further noted that when the administration took office, it inherited “an economy living on borrowed time,” forcing tough choices like the removal of the petrol subsidy and foreign exchange reforms.

To mitigate the impact, the Chief of Staff highlighted that the strategic wage review cycle was intentionally reduced from five years to three years in 2024, paving the way for the upcoming reassessment.

He also pointed to other worker-centric interventions implemented since January 2026, including the reintroduction of gratuities for retiring federal civil servants and lifting workers earning up to N800,000 annually entirely out of the personal income tax net.

In his remarks, Williams Akporeha, National Coordinator, WOPU described the summit as an unprecedented convergence of Nigeria’s productive engine, warning that the platform will be a major sensitization force heading into the 2027 general elections.

“WOPU is not a mere political pressure group; WOPU is a grassroots volcanic movement. We serve to bridge the gap of distance between beautiful policies stated in our high-conditioned offices in Abuja and the lived realities of the family in Yobe, the trader in Onitsha, and the tech worker in Lagos,” he noted.

Also speaking at the event, Muhammad Dingyadi, minister of Labour and Employment, stressed that the true measure of governance lies in the dignity and productivity of its workforce, rather than documents signed in secretariat offices.

While defending the administration’s long-term economic trajectory including infrastructure investments and vocational training programs, the Minister reminded participants that economic growth must be a collaborative effort.

“Government economic policies are designed to stimulate production, attract investment, and position Nigeria for long-term prosperity. However, governance is a shared responsibility,” the Minister stated, urging a continuous, constructive social dialogue between organized labor, employers, and the state.