Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has pledged to restore petrol subsidy and introduce a minimum monthly wage of N500,000 for Nigerian workers if elected president in 2027.
Sowore made the commitment in a post on his official X account on Monday, reiterating his position on wages and fuel pricing ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
The AAC candidate said his proposed N500,000 monthly wage would represent a living wage for Nigerian workers, adding that criticism or attempts to challenge the proposal with alternative statistics would not alter his position.
“Attempts to water down our proposal for a N500,000 monthly living wage with funny statistics will not change our position.
“Under our government, Nigerian workers will earn a minimum wage of at least N500,000 monthly. We will also restore the petrol subsidy.
“Workers deserve wages they can actually live on,” the AAC presidential candidate wrote.
Sowore had previously expressed support for retaining petrol subsidy during a presidential debate at the Nigerian Bar Association’s annual conference in August. He argued that government intervention should protect poorer Nigerians from the impact of fuel prices.
His latest position comes amid renewed debate among 2027 presidential candidates over the future of petrol subsidy following its removal by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on May 29, 2023.
Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has also said he would restore a form of petrol subsidy if elected. His proposal, however, is focused on supporting domestic refining rather than returning to the previous import-based arrangement.
Atiku has described his proposed intervention as a production-linked subsidy that would provide support to Nigerian refineries under specified conditions.
Meanwhile, Allied Peoples Movement (APM) presidential candidate Seyi Makinde has rejected a return to the old subsidy regime. Instead, he has proposed a different approach involving cheaper domestic crude pricing for Nigerian refineries as a means of reducing petrol costs.
The fuel subsidy debate has therefore become one of the policy issues featuring prominently in the 2027 presidential contest, with candidates putting forward different approaches to petrol pricing, domestic refining and the cost of living.
Sowore’s latest proposal also builds on his earlier campaign commitment to a N500,000 monthly living wage. In a recent interview, he outlined the AAC’s broader agenda, which includes 24-hour electricity, free and accessible education and the construction of one million public mixed-income homes.
