By Mary Izuaka

 

Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has said he will restore petrol subsidy if elected president in 2027, accusing the federal government of failing to account for savings from the policy.

Speaking during an interview on Wednesday, the former vice president said while he did not oppose the removal of subsidy, the government had not shown what it did with the funds saved.

“I did not oppose the removal of the oil subsidy, but where is the money? Where did it go? It was intended to reduce poverty and help children attend school. Where is the money now? It seems they are just stealing it. If elected, I will bring back the oil subsidy, and whoever stole the money must refund it,” Mr Atiku said in Hausa.

For decades, the Nigerian government had subsidised and fixed retail prices of petroleum products.

The payment, however, threatened the nation’s fiscal position and affected the government’s ability to fund developmental projects.

In 2022, over N4 trillion was used to subsidise petrol, more than the government spent on education and healthcare combined.

On 29 May 2023, in his inaugural address, President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of the subsidy to lift a major financial burden off the back of the government.

Speaking during his inauguration at the time, Mr Tinubu said the petrol subsidy regime was not sustainable.

He also stated that funds for the subsidy will be diverted to other things like public infrastructure, education, health care and jobs.

The development caused hardship for many Nigerians with an attendant increase in the prices of goods and services.

Mr Atiku argued that the removal of subsidy could have been justified if the proceeds were channelled into critical sectors of the economy.

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“The government successfully removed the subsidy, but we do not know where the money went. If they had used the money for development, to solve security problems, for education, and to create opportunities for the youth, it would be different. If elected, I can remove the subsidy and use the money to do all these properly,” he added.

The government, however, insists the policy has yielded significant savings.

On Wednesday, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said savings from petrol subsidy removal had generated N15.8 trillion in resources for the federation between June 2023 and December 2025.

The minister explained that the savings were reflected through higher revenue collections, particularly because the naira value of dollar-denominated transactions increased following the exchange-rate reform.