The Federal Government has finally reached an agreement with the Nigeria Labour Congress to pay a monthly transport allowance of N70,000 to public service workers for six months, starting November 2026. The government also agreed to settle 19 months of outstanding allowances owed to health workers over the next three months. But the only reason Tinubu is paying this money now is because the 2027 election is staring him in the face.
For 19 months, doctors, nurses and other health workers kept Nigerian hospitals running without receiving their arrears. They worked double shifts. They saved lives. They watched their salaries lose value to inflation. During those 19 months, Tinubu did not care. He was busy flying around the world on 52 foreign trips, spending 261 days outside Nigeria. He was busy buying luxury jets and approving billions for his political cronies. The health workers were invisible to him.
Suddenly, the government has found the money. The NLC went to the negotiation table, and the government miraculously agreed to pay. But the N70,000 allowance is only for six months. It will expire before the 2027 elections. It is not a solution to the wage crisis. It is a bribe designed to keep labour quiet until Tinubu secures another term.
Look at the hypocrisy. The same government that could not pay health workers their arrears for 19 months found N1 billion to buy seven brand new Toyota Land Cruiser Prado SUVs for APC youth leaders. The same government that claimed there was no money to pay doctors approved N37.64 billion for presidential travel logistics. The same government that told Nigerians to endure the pain of fuel subsidy removal is now asking the Senate to approve another $20.5 billion in foreign loans.
Tinubu has added N79.41 trillion to the national debt since taking office. He has borrowed from everywhere. He has spent on everything. But he could not find the money to pay the people who keep Nigerians alive. He only found it when he realised that his political survival depends on it.
The health workers waited for 19 months. They watched the President travel, they watched him sign deals with convicted money launderers, and they watched him decorate bridges with his pictures. They waited because they had no choice. But Tinubu had a choice. He chose to ignore them until he needed their votes. He is not paying them because he cares. He is paying them because he is desperate. And Nigerians can see right through it.
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