Veterans demand ₦250,000 Minimum Wage for soldiers

A coalition of retired military personnel has demanded the immediate implementation of the approved ₦250,000 minimum wage for serving soldiers. The veterans have accused the Federal Government of deliberately stalling the execution of a critical pay adjustment bill that was passed by the National Assembly and formally assented to by President Bola Tinubu.

The confrontation took place during an emergency veterans' retreat attended by over 70 retired service members at the Armed Forces Headquarters Command Mess 1 in Abuja on Monday, July 13.

The retired officers expressed deep frustration over what they describe as a sudden U-turn by defense authorities regarding the agreed pay scale. According to the veterans, the National Assembly reviewed regional military pay scales in October 2025 and discovered that Nigerian troops were the lowest paid among several African countries. In response, lawmakers passed a bill fixing ₦250,000 as the baseline monthly wage for the lowest-ranking soldier, inserting the required funding directly into the 2026 budget.

President Tinubu signed the bill into law in November 2025, directing that the implementation take effect with three months of backdated arrears. Despite initial public declarations of gratitude from the Ministry of Defence and the Service Chiefs, the veterans allege that military leadership has recently denied knowledge of the approved salary structure.

The situation was further complicated by a recent statement from the Minister of Defence, who claimed the military minimum wage was increased to ₦100,000. The veterans quickly clarified that the ₦100,000 figure was simply the general national minimum wage adjustment from 2024 and has absolutely no bearing on the dedicated military salary review signed in November 2025.

Retreat organizer Colonel Innocent Azubike (retd.) explained the legislative background, noting that the Senate passed a bill for an upward review of the pay of serving and retired military personnel, which the House of Representatives concurred with. He stated that before passing the bill, a comparative study of military pay scales in other African nations found Nigeria’s to be ridiculously the lowest, which led the Senate to fix ₦250,000 as the minimum pay for the least-paid soldier and direct that the required funds be included in the 2026 budget.

President Tinubu signed the bill into law in November 2025, directing that the implementation take effect with three months of backdated arrears. Azubike noted that the President assented to the bill and stated it would carry three months’ arrears from the date of signing, which was publicly announced by the Presidency and widely reported, after which the Ministry of Defence and the Service Chiefs repeatedly thanked the President and assured personnel that payment would commence soon.

While the veterans have agreed to wait one week for a formal response from the defense headquarters, they emphasized that their plans for a peaceful demonstration remain active.

If the administration fails to provide a satisfactory timeline for the release of the funds, the retired personnel plan to mobilize a major protest at the Federal Ministry of Finance to bring the issue directly to the president's attention.