The controversy over petrol subsidy removal has intensified ahead of the 2027 elections, with the All Progressives Congress reacting to former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s plan to restore the subsidy, while the African Democratic Congress challenged the Federal Government to account for the N15.8tn in additional revenues it said accrued from the reforms.
The National Chairman of the APC, Prof Nentawe Yilwatda, warned that Atiku’s proposal to return Nigeria to the old fuel subsidy regime could reverse the economic gains recorded under the ongoing reforms, with negative consequences for workers’ wages, education, infrastructure and the fiscal stability of states.
The APC national chairman, in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Information Strategy, Abimbola Tooki, on Sunday, said the former Vice President’s proposal to reinstate fuel subsidy would return Nigerians to fuel queues, threaten the payment of the current minimum wage and lead to the cancellation of education grants for Nigerian students, among other negative consequences for the masses.
On May 29, 2023, President Bola Tinubu, during his inauguration, declared that fuel subsidy was gone, in line with his campaign promise.
Although the removal triggered an increase in the prices of goods and services, the APC-led Federal Government has consistently maintained that the policy has yielded significant economic gains for the country.
Ahead of the 2027 election, the African Democratic Congress presidential candidate, who also promised in 2023 to end fuel subsidy if elected, last week pledged to reinstate the subsidy if elected in the January presidential election to reduce the effect of its removal on Nigerians.
His promise has, however, generated mixed reactions among Nigerians.