Governor of Anambra State, Charles Soludo, has proposed that elected officials in Nigeria should earn the minimum wage to better understand the financial struggles faced by ordinary citizens.

Speaking on Wednesday at a special edition of The Platform, an event organized by The Covenant Nation to promote national development, Soludo emphasized that Nigeria is experiencing severe financial difficulties.

The event coincided with the celebration of Nigeria’s 25 years of uninterrupted democracy. Soludo highlighted that the extravagant lifestyles of government officials are a significant burden on the nation’s resources.

“Nigeria is very poor and broke, but the lifestyle of government and government officials does not show it, especially with the obscene flamboyance in public display,” Soludo said.

He stressed the need for elected officials to be more sensitive to the plight of the poor, who are hungry and impatient.

“In this case, I agree with Reverend Father Mbaka, who said elected governors should also earn minimum wage. I agree that we should be paid that so that we can feel that as well,” Soludo added.

Soludo also mentioned that he has not received any salary since taking office, choosing instead to donate it to the state. “It is symbolic. It is not much. I think generally, the system is in denial. There must be some signaling; it is just the symbolism of this.”

He called for a new code of conduct for public officeholders to enhance fiscal responsibility and ensure they fulfill their duties effectively. “That is why I proposed reinventing the new code of conduct for public officers,” Soludo explained.

Soludo provided stark figures to illustrate the financial constraints. “For the federal government, the actual projecting revenue comes to about N6,160 per Nigerian, per month. For the states, except Lagos and a few states, most states have revenues amounting to less than N3,000 per resident, per month. It is from this share per citizen that we are expected to provide all the infrastructure, debt service, pay salaries and pensions, build schools and provide everything.”

He concluded by urging government officials to be conscious of their spending, noting, “For each of our wasteful spending, let’s be conscious about the fact how many citizens share we are squandering. Once we lose this consciousness about the public trust we bear, the society dies irredeemably.