A former Director of Defence Information, Major General John Enenche (retired), has called for a review of Nigerian soldiers’ welfare, recommending a minimum monthly salary of ₦250,000 for rank-and-file personnel to reflect current economic realities and the demands of military service.
Enenche, also a military strategist, made the recommendation while speaking in an interview on ARISE TV on Sunday.
“For me, a Nigerian soldier from the base, shouldn’t be paid anything less than ₦250,000 per month,” he said.
Asked to justify the proposal, the retired general said the amount was a modest benchmark considering the rising cost of living.
“Because if you prorate it against expectations, look at how much they spend on feeding. That is feeding alone. That is just a baseline for me,” he said.
Responding to concerns that soldiers already enjoy government-provided accommodation, uniforms and equipment, Enenche argued that military personnel make sacrifices that distinguish them from other public servants.
“A soldier is somebody that has sacrificed all. You have bought his time. A soldier is not a mercenary. So how can he go and buy his gun? It’s only a mercenary that will go and buy his gun and come and fight for you,” he said.
He noted that soldiers remain on duty round the clock and are required to respond whenever called upon, even after retirement.
“No soldier is ever off-duty, even as I’m retired now. Chief of Defence Staff calls me now, ‘General Enenche, sir, we want you to…’ I would do it, even in retirement,” he said.
Enenche also said soldiers were unable to pursue additional sources of income because of the nature of military service.
“A soldier does not go to farm… where is the time to go to farm?” he asked, adding that unlike some public servants, military personnel are not entitled to dedicated days for personal economic activities.
He further argued that the proposed salary remained modest in view of transportation costs and other living expenses.
“Even this ₦250,000 I’m talking about is modest.
“Now, if a soldier’s wife wants to enter a vehicle, because they are not imprisoned in the barracks anyway, or the soldier wants to go out, what is transport fare now? There’s no transport fare in Abuja here that, as I was made to understand, that’s less than, on average, ₦1,000 to ₦2,000 to go somewhere.
“So, that is the consideration that I am looking at, and I’m proposing and requesting that modestly weigh it against other competing demands on the government. Yes, if they can, and I know, I believe it should be doable,” he said.
The retired general said any salary adjustment should also apply across the military hierarchy in line with the existing remuneration structure.
“I suggest and recommend, if possible, within available resources and considering other competing demands from other sectors of the economy, the soldier, the airman, the rating…”
When asked if he was recommending a minimum salary of ₦250,000, Enenche replied, “That is my recommendation, my suggestion.”
Enenche’s recommendation comes weeks after the Minister of Defence, Christopher Musa, announced that the Federal Government had increased the minimum monthly salary of Nigerian soldiers from ₦49,000 to ₦100,000 as part of efforts to improve military welfare.
