Chief Sunny Onuesoke, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Delta State, has asserted that the solution to Nigeria’s economic problems lies not in raising the minimum wage but in deflating the economy. In an interview with Vanguard, Onuesoke argued that increasing wages would exacerbate economic issues rather than solve them.
He explained, “What Nigeria needs is deflation. If salaries are raised to one million Naira today, the prices of goods and services will keep rising. The more the minimum wage increases, the more prices of goods and services will rise alongside it. People producing food items like pepper, tomatoes, yam, and garri will also increase their prices. Wage increases cannot match the inflation rate because as salaries go up, more currency circulates in the system, which in turn drives up prices. It’s simple economic theory.”
Onuesoke emphasized that civil servants, who constitute only 14 percent of those providing services in Nigeria, are only one of the factors in the economy. “The private sector, which does not classify as civil servants, cannot afford to pay the same high salaries,” he noted.
He advocated for improvements in social infrastructure to alleviate hardship, suggesting that the government should focus on massive agricultural and housing programs, subsidize and reduce the cost of education, and ensure comprehensive health insurance coverage.
“Our problem is projecting without accurate data. Leaders should know the exact amount of land needed to produce specific quantities of crops like cassava,” Onuesoke stated. He also criticized the ongoing issue with Nigeria’s refineries, questioning why the country, despite being the sixth largest oil producer in the world, still imports refined products. “What stops the country from fixing its four refineries? Is it really so difficult to repair them?” he asked.
