Senate Tasks FG To Raise Salaries Of Soldiers
The Senate, on Tuesday, urged the Federal Government to raise the minimum pay for personnel of the Nigerian Armed Forces in line with current realities of rising cost of living and worsening economic hardship,
Former Senate Chief Whip, Senator Ali Ndume, who tabled the motion titled “Urgent Need to Increase the Minimum Wage and Improve Conditions of Service for Members of the Nigerian Armed Forces and Other Security Agencies”, said the last time the salaries of the military was increased was in 2008.
He said that military personnel in the country deserve better compensation than they are currently getting in view of the risks and sacrifices they make daily to safeguard national security.
“The current remuneration and minimum entry-level wage for many personnel across the services have been outpaced by rising living costs, with knock-on effects on morale, recruitment, retention, and operational effectiveness.
“The current minimum monthly wage for junior personnel in the Armed Forces ranges between ₦50,000 and ₦60,000, depending on rank,” Ndume told the Senators.
The amount, he said, is “grossly inadequate in light of current economic realities, inflationary pressures, and the soaring cost of living”.
Ndume further argued that soldiers in other African countries earn far more better salaries than Nigerian soldiers.
“In Ghana, the entry-level pay for a private soldier is equivalent to about ₦180,000 per month; in South Africa, ₦250,000; in Egypt, ₦230,000–₦280,000; and in Kenya, about ₦200,000, excluding operational allowances,” he said,
The Senator said that it was clearly obvious that the wages of Nigerian soldiers does not in anyway reflect the magnitude of their sacrifices to national security even in the midst of extreme and hazardous conditions.
Ndume, who insisted that boosting soldiers’ welfare is not only a moral obligation but a strategic necessity, also urged the Senate to call on the Federal Government to recruit more security operatives, especially into the Nigerian Police Force and the military.
Apart from salary increments and more recruitment, Ndume asked President Bola Tinubu to provide adequate equipment for the military to effectively address the security threats to the nation.
After deliberating on the motion, the Senator unanimously adopted Ndume’s motion, urging the Federal Government to quickly review and substantially increase the pay and allowances of members of the Armed Forces.
The Senate tasked the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, and the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission to take appropriate action.
The Senate assigned its committees on Defence, Army, Navy, and Air Force to coordinatr efforts with relevant agencies to determine realistic remuneration benchmarks comparable to international standards.
