By Achile Danjuma
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration of failing to protect Nigerian workers amid rising inflation, widespread insecurity, and a severe shortage of jobs.
In a Workers’ Day statement issued on Friday, the opposition party declared that millions of Nigerians are now “working harder but earning less,” as the cost of food, housing, transport, and energy continues to outpace wages.
The ADC’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said the current hardship is not accidental but a direct consequence of policy failures by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
“Across Nigeria today, workers are doing more and earning less. Rising costs of food, transport, housing, and energy have eroded the value of Nigerian workers’ daily and monthly wages,” the statement read. “For many, hard work no longer guarantees stability, dignity, or upward mobility. This is not sustainable. And it is not acceptable.”
The party argued that persistent insecurity has disrupted farming and business activity, while job creation has stalled at a time when millions of young Nigerians are entering the workforce. It added that there has been no meaningful intervention to cushion the impact of inflation on workers.
“A government that cannot guarantee safety, create jobs, or stabilise the cost of living is a government that is failing its workers,” the ADC said.
The party outlined its alternative vision, including unlocking key sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, and services; restoring security as a foundation for economic activity; stabilising the macroeconomic environment; reducing the cost of living by addressing inflation at its roots; and supporting small businesses.
“Workers are not asking for charity. They are asking for fairness,” the statement concluded. “What they have received instead is neglect.”
The ADC reaffirmed its commitment to building an economy where productivity translates into improved incomes, and called for policies designed with the Nigerian worker at the centre.