The Minister of Defence, Christopher Musa, has said Nigerian soldiers now earn a minimum monthly salary of N100,000 following the Federal Government’s recent review of the welfare package for military personnel.

Musa disclosed this during an interview on News Central ahead of the broadcast of its NC Exclusive programme noting that although soldiers’ welfare had improved, the defense sector still requires more funding to effectively tackle the country’s security challenges.

Responding to a question on the adequacy of the current defence budget, the minister said that allocation was insufficient but acknowledged the Federal Government’s efforts to improve the renumeration of military personnel.

He explained that salary of of entry-level soldier had increased from N49,000 to 100,000 as part of measures to boost the morale and welfare of troops.

“When they started, a soldier was collecting N49,000 monthly. We tried so hard, now a soldier is collecting N100,000,” he said.

The minister also advocated the introduction of the death penalty for kidnappers, saying stiffer punishment was needed to curb the growing wave of abductions across the country.

“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,” Musa said.

Speaking on the recent abduction of pupils in Oyo State, the minister described the incident as unfortunate, alleging that the kidnappers were attempting to force the military to release some of their detained commanders.

“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,” he said.

According to him, the abductors also threatened to kill the children if security forces intensified rescue operations.

“They are now threatening that if we come any closer, they’re going to kill all the kids,” he added.

The minister further dismissed allegations of poor feeding in the military, maintaining that claims circulating in the public space were misleading.

Referring to an incident involving a military officer identified as Justice Crack, alleging that the officer deliberately created a false impression about the quality of meals served to soldiers by removing some of the food items before recording a video.