Peter Obi, former Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, has urged Nigerian workers to wield their collective voice and votes to demand competent leadership.
In a statement issued on Friday to mark International Workers’ Day, Obi described Nigerian workers as the “backbone of every nation”.
He said Nigerian workers must “refuse to reward failure, corruption, ethnic division, and bad governance”.
“It is deeply painful that those who wake up every day to teach, heal, build, farm, produce, transport, protect, and serve our nation are still denied the dignity and fair reward their labour deserves,” Obi said.
“I therefore urge Nigerian workers to recognise the strength they hold collectively. They owe it to themselves, their children, and future generations to support and demand leadership built on competence, character, capacity, credibility, and compassion.
“By refusing to reward failure, corruption, ethnic division, and bad governance, they can help build a nation where hard work is respected and rewarded with dignity.”
The former Anambra governor said the current minimum wage — recently raised to N70,000 nationally but unevenly implemented across states — can no longer guarantee even a modest standard of living.
“No nation can truly develop beyond the strength, productivity, and wellbeing of its workforce,” Obi said.
“The progress of any society rests on the quality of its human capital, the skill of its people, and the commitment of its workers. When workers suffer, the nation suffers. When workers are empowered, the nation prospers.”