Phrank Shaibu, Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication to African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar, has criticised Nigeria’s Ambassador-designate to Mexico, Reno Omokri, over his claim that Nigerians can survive on N3,000 a day.
Shaibu argued that Omokri’s assessment of daily living expenses amounted to an admission that the administration of President Bola Tinubu had made life increasingly expensive for Nigerians.
The Atiku aide made the remarks in a post on X on Monday while reacting to Omokri’s comments on the rising cost of living and poverty benchmarks.
Omokri, during an appearance on Sunday, said his personal assessment of food prices showed that Nigerians could live on N3,000 daily. He explained that he had visited markets with a journalist to check the prices of essential commodities, including yam, rice, maize and fruits.
According to Omokri, the N3,000 figure should be considered within the Nigerian economic context, arguing that the same amount would represent poverty in the United States. He maintained that international poverty thresholds should take into account the economic realities of individual countries.
Shaibu challenged the calculation by comparing the proposed daily expenditure with Nigeria’s minimum wage.
“Let’s accept @renoomokri’s mathematics: ₦3,000 × 30 days = ₦90,000,” Shaibu wrote.
He noted that the amount was already N20,000 higher than the current N70,000 minimum wage, arguing that a worker earning the minimum wage would still struggle to meet basic expenses.
“So after working an entire month, a father must borrow ₦20,000 just to pay his transport, before buying a single cup of Garri for his children,” he added.
Shaibu subsequently accused Omokri of inadvertently acknowledging the hardship Nigerians are facing under the Tinubu administration.
“Thank you, Reno. You have just admitted the truth: @officialABAT made Nigeria expensive.
“@atiku will make Nigeria affordable again!” he stated.
Omokri, however, defended his position on poverty measurement, arguing that Nigerians’ living conditions should be assessed within the realities of the country rather than solely through global benchmarks.
He questioned whether the World Bank’s global poverty benchmark was sufficient for assessing economic hardship in individual countries.
In the same discussion, Omokri also rejected the perception that Nigeria ranks among the world’s most corrupt countries.
He argued that international corruption rankings often rely on global metrics which, in his view, do not adequately account for Nigeria’s cultural practices.
Omokri cited Lagos’ economic growth and the popularity of the annual Detty December festivities as examples of developments he said challenge negative perceptions about Nigeria.
He urged Nigerians to take greater responsibility for telling the country’s story rather than allowing foreign organisations to define Nigeria’s image.
“Nigeria is not as corrupt as the world thinks it is because the metrics they are using to gauge corruption are global metrics and they do not take into account the particular culture of Nigeria,” he said.
“When a public official does the job very well in this country, people show appreciation. Transparency International sees that as corruption, but it is not corruption,” Omokri added.
He further said Nigeria must develop its own narrative rather than allowing international organisations to portray the country negatively.
The exchange between Omokri and Shaibu has added another layer to the growing political debate over the cost of living, poverty measurement and the economic record of the Tinubu administration ahead of the 2027 general elections.
