The Minister of Defence, Christopher Musa, says Nigerian soldiers now earn a minimum monthly salary of N100,000 following a recent review of their welfare by the Federal Government.
Musa disclosed this during an interview with News Central ahead of its broadcast on the NC Exclusive programme on Friday.
The minister, a former Chief of Defence Staff, however, said the military remained underfunded despite the improvement in personnel welfare.
Responding to a question on whether the current defence budget was adequate, he said: “It’s not enough.”
Musa said the Federal Government had made significant improvements to soldiers’ salaries.
“When they started, a soldier was collecting N49,000 monthly. We tried so hard, now he’s collecting N100,000,” he said.
The minister also called for the introduction of the death penalty for kidnappers, saying tougher punishment was needed to deter the growing wave of abductions.
“I think we should do that. There must be deterrence. The laws are soft, and that’s why people take advantage. If they know once you commit an offence, there must be punishment,” he said.
Speaking on the recent abduction of pupils in Oyo State, Musa described the incident as unfortunate and alleged that the kidnappers were attempting to force the military to release some of their detained commanders.
He said: “You know, it’s a very sad event. Unfortunately, bad things do happen. For whatever reason, they are looking for leverage because we have some of their commanders with us, and they feel taking these kids and holding them to ransom will make us release their commander.”
According to him, the abductors had also threatened to kill the children if security forces intensified rescue efforts.
“They are now threatening that if we come any closer, they’re going to kill all the kids,” Musa added.
The minister also dismissed allegations that soldiers were poorly fed, insisting that reports circulating in the public space were misleading.
Referring to an incident involving a military officer identified as Justice Crack, Musa alleged that the officer deliberately created a false impression about the quality of meals served to troops.
“The soldier’s food was okay. There was meat; there was all this. But he told them to pull out those things and make it look as if those things were not there,” he said.