Dismissed ex-lance corporal Rotimi Olamilekan, popularly known as “Soja Boi,” has challenged the Nigerian Army to make its payroll public to prove his allegations regarding soldiers’ welfare and remuneration are false.
Okay News reports that Olamilekan issued the challenge in a new video released on Wednesday, April 8, 2026, directly responding to the Army’s earlier statement which branded his claims as “deliberate falsehoods.” In the video, the former soldier displayed bank transaction alerts which he claimed detailed his earnings and allowances while in active service.
According to Olamilekan, his monthly salary amounted to ₦112,061.59, supplemented by a ₦20,000 “grumbling allowance” and a ₦6,000 “cigarette allowance.” He clarified that the ₦45,000 operational allowance mentioned by the Army is only paid to personnel actively deployed to conflict zones like Maiduguri, meaning soldiers not on the frontlines receive significantly less.
“I am simply stating the facts, and I will back them up with evidence,” Olamilekan said, insisting he was not trying to damage the Army’s image but to highlight the realities of service. He further doubled down on his claim that personnel are often forced to purchase their own protective gear, including helmets and fragmentation jackets, urging Nigerians to verify his account with their relatives serving in the military.
The Nigerian Army had previously maintained that it operates a transparent salary system under the Manual of Financial Administration (MAFA) and that all uniforms and kits are issued through an institutional logistics system. While the Army attributed Olamilekan’s dismissal to “grave acts of indiscipline” and social media policy violations, the former lance corporal remains adamant that the public deserves to see the official payroll to settle the dispute.
