Atiku’s promise to restore fuel subsidy driven by desperation, will hurt economy — Presidency

By Precious Mark

The Presidency has rejected the economic proposals put forward by former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the 2027 presidential candidate for the African Democratic Congress (ADC), describing his promise to restore the fuel subsidy as a retrogressive move driven by political desperation.

The executive branch detailed its stance in a statehouse statement issued on Thursday, which was signed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.

The statement criticized the opposition candidate for reversing his position on subsidy removal, emphasizing that reinstating the policy lacks fiscal sense and would violate the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

The Presidency directly challenged the claims surrounding public finance savings by clarifying that no N30 trillion subsidy windfall exists in government coffers.

“First, we must clear some ambiguities about the so-called subsidy. It is not some money sitting in the treasury to be disbursed to offer cheap fuel to Nigerians,” the Presidency stated.

“It is the massive discount the NNPC offered the Nigerian government: selling fuel it bought at N100 at N50 at the pump, leading to under-recovery of costs and massive losses,” the statement added, noting that trillions of Naira in subsidy costs remain unpaid on the company’s books.

The official release pointed out that the domestic energy sector has fundamentally transformed due to increased output from local refiners like the Dangote Refinery and private operations such as Aradel. Returning to price controls would harm these investments, lead to job losses, and force the nation back into spending $10 billion every year on imported refined petroleum.

The policy shift away from fuel discounts has freed up vital public funds, according to the Presidency.

This shift allowed the three tiers of government to share a record N3 trillion from the federation account in July, while redirecting N15 trillion toward critical infrastructure projects and state allocations.

Addressing the financial burdens associated with restoring price controls, the Presidency questioned how a restored subsidy would be funded and who would absorb the difference if petrol is sold below its economic cost of N1,200 to N1,300.

“Ultimately, that cost falls on the public finances—through reduced funds for infrastructure and social services, reduced allocation to states and 774 local councils, increased borrowing, higher public debt, or some combination of these,” the Presidency concluded.

The administration emphasized that transition efforts toward Compressed Natural Gas (CNG); which is 70% cheaper than petrol—offer a more sustainable solution to high transportation costs.

The presidency urged Atiku to present the public with full legal and financial details on how his proposed subsidy restoration would be funded and implemented.