Kenneth Okonkwo, a veteran Nollywood actor and politician, has stated that the former N30,000 minimum wage had greater value than the current N70,000 minimum wage benchmark.
According to WITHIN9JA, President Bola Tinubu recently approved the N70,000 minimum wage following an agreement with joint labor unions.
In a snippet from the ‘Mic On’ podcast, Okonkwo argued that the wage increase does not reflect current economic realities. He emphasized that the former N30,000 minimum wage was more valuable, citing the exchange rate changes: “The N30,000 minimum wage people were earning before this government came in was of greater value than the current N70,000 minimum wage. At that time, the exchange rate was N500 to a dollar, but now it’s N1,500, even reaching N2,000 at one point. Do the math.
“When the exchange rate was N500 per dollar, the minimum wage was $60. Now, with the exchange rate at N1,500, it’s about $45 per month. Clearly, it’s of less value. What can they claim to have achieved?”
In July, Okonkwo announced his departure from Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate. Following his announcement and criticism of the party’s 2023 candidate, the leadership of the party labeled him as a mole.
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