Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate for the 2027 general election, Dr Chibuzo Okereke, has vowed to scrap the country’s minimum-wage approach and replace it with a living-wage system that takes into account the broader socio-economic needs of Nigerian workers.
Okereke said a living wage should not be reduced to fixing a particular monetary figure, arguing that workers’ welfare must encompass decent pay, housing, healthcare, food security, job security, social protection and a safe working environment.
The LP candidate, who spoke in an interview with Nigerian Tribune, said the present system of negotiating minimum wages every few years was inadequate because the cost of living could change rapidly between wage reviews.
He said: “When we have a living-wage law, you will see that the question of when we come to negotiate will disappear.”
According to him, the irreducible minimum for Nigerian workers should be “equal opportunity, functional social welfare and a fair reward system”.
Okereke, who was adopted by the Labour Party as its presidential candidate in May and subsequently ratified by its National Executive Committee, said his proposed living-wage framework would be supported by an efficient social-protection system.
He said workers’ take-home pay must also be capable of responding to changes in the cost of living, noting that rising prices could quickly erode the value of any fixed wage.
“If somebody bought this phone for ₦20,000 today and tomorrow the phone is ₦50,000, already the cost of things is rising. There should be different ways to make consequential adjustments,” he said.
The LP candidate also linked workers’ welfare to the quality of public services, saying government could not continue paying workers without addressing the cost of housing, healthcare, education and food.
He questioned why workers in government offices should travel long distances to obtain basic medical attention, while many lower-income workers were being forced to pay for private schools because of declining confidence in public education.
He said government must therefore address food supply and “food sovereignty”, while ensuring affordable housing and functional healthcare as part of the living-wage framework.
On what he considered the greatest challenge facing Nigerian workers, Okereke identified the overall condition of service, rather than wages alone. “I think it is the condition of service. It is all put together, everything, plus the condition of service,” he said.
He argued that workers must have access to fair promotion, training opportunities, gratuity, pension and healthcare, adding that the welfare of workers should not be treated as charity.
“We will demand productivity, quality, service and value for money. But we should be able to create miracles in the lives of Nigerians,” he said.
Okereke also criticised disparities in remuneration across government institutions, arguing that some public agencies had boards empowered to determine their own salaries and benefits outside the normal collective bargaining and minimum-wage framework.
He said the system needed to be reviewed to ensure that longevity, productivity and value creation were reflected in the reward structure.
According to him, public service should become attractive again by guaranteeing workers their legitimate benefits and providing functional health support.
The LP candidate further promised to redesign the way subsidies are administered, saying his government would focus on directly supporting citizens rather than subsidising systems that could be captured by vested interests.
“I have said I will subsidise the people, not the system. I have said it. I will subsidise our people because they need support to get ahead and thrive,” he said.
