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 on News Central ahead of the broadcast of the station’s NC Exclusive programme on Friday.
The former Chief of Defence Staff, however, maintained that despite the improvement in personnel welfare, the military remains underfunded.
Responding to a question on whether the current defence budget was sufficient, the minister said it was inadequate.
He explained that the Federal Government had significantly increased the earnings of soldiers, noting that the minimum monthly salary had risen from N49,000 to N100,000.
Musa also advocated the introduction of the death penalty for kidnappers, arguing that stiffer punishment would serve as a stronger deterrent against the growing wave of abductions across the country.
Commenting on the recent abduction of pupils in Oyo State, he described the incident as unfortunate, alleging that the kidnappers were attempting to pressure the military into releasing some of their detained commanders.
According to him, the abductors threatened to kill the children if security forces intensified rescue operations.
The minister further dismissed allegations of poor feeding within the military, insisting that reports circulating in the public space were misleading.
He claimed that a military officer identified as Justice Crack deliberately created a false impression about the quality of meals served to soldiers by removing food items before recording a video.
