Reno Omokri, in a video recorded in London, compared the cost of living in the United Kingdom with that of Nigeria, stating that shaving his beard in the UK costs £40. At the current exchange rate of £1 to ₦1,870, this amounts to about ₦74,800. He added that a shave and haircut cost around £74 — approximately ₦138,380. Omokri further noted that the cost of living in the UK is extremely high, pointing out that a one‑bedroom flat in London costs about £2,400 per month, which is roughly ₦4.5 million.
He argued that when Nigerians hear that their peers in the UK earn around £40,000 annually, it does not automatically mean they are living better than those in Nigeria, given the high cost of living abroad. Omokri also encouraged Nigerians to appreciate and promote their country, noting that Turkish citizens consistently speak positively about their homeland wherever they go.
Reactions to the video on Omokri’s X page were mixed, with many commenters criticising his comparison between the UK and Nigeria. Some pointed to the vast difference in minimum wage, arguing that the two situations are not comparable. A commenter identified as Wariboi noted that the UK minimum wage is about £12.70 per hour, while Nigeria’s minimum wage of ₦77,000 per month is equivalent to roughly £41–£42.
Isaac Fayose, brother to former Ekiti State governor Ayodele Fayose, also reacted to Omokri’s video. He criticized the comparison, stating that Nigeria’s minimum wage is just ₦70,000. With petrol selling at about ₦1,400 per litre, he argued that a minimum‑wage earner can only afford about 48 litres of petrol in a month — excluding all other expenses. Fayose added that the UK minimum wage is around £12.50 per hour, and that even the lowest‑paid worker who works 40 hours per week earns about £25,000 annually.
He further explained that £25,000 per year is equivalent to about ₦50 million, while a ₦70,000 monthly salary in Nigeria amounts to less than ₦1 million annually. Fayose concluded by alleging that Omokri’s comparison may be influenced by his recent ambassadorial appointment.
NewsMaximum