Fuel Subsidy: ‘Nigerians Deserve Clarity, Not Trial And Error’ – Presidency Knocks Atiku

The Presidency has accused former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, of playing politics with the issue of fuel subsidy ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The Presidency also questioned Atiku’s position on the policy, saying conflicting statements from his camp had created confusion over whether he genuinely had a clear plan to restore or eventually remove subsidy if elected president.

Naija News reports that the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, raised the concerns in a statement while reacting to Atiku’s recent comments on the matter.

According to Onanuga, the former vice president’s position raises a major question: “is he seriously proposing an economic policy, or is he simply playing politics with the temporary discomfort Nigerians face?”

Onanuga said Nigerians had received three different explanations within one week about what an Atiku administration would do with petrol subsidy.

He said the first position came from Atiku’s spokesperson, Paul Ibe, who said the former vice president would restore subsidy if elected and later phase it out.

Ibe had reportedly described the policy as a temporary measure designed to give Nigerians and businesses some relief and allow them to recover from economic hardship.

However, Onanuga said another senior aide to Atiku, Phrank Shaibu, later rejected Ibe’s explanation.

According to him, Shaibu described Ibe’s statement as an “unauthorised and misleading characterisation” of Atiku’s position.

Shaibu reportedly explained that Atiku would not set a specific date for ending subsidy.

Instead, he said the policy would remain until domestic refining improves, fuel supply becomes stable, competition increases and market forces are able to deliver affordable prices without government intervention.

But Atiku later stepped into the controversy himself and, according to the Presidency, returned to the position initially attributed to him by Ibe.

The former vice president said his position has not changed and promised to introduce what he described as a “targeted subsidy” if elected.

“I will restore targeted subsidy and put purchasing power back in the hands of Nigerians,” Atiku said.

Onanuga said the conflicting explanations went beyond a simple disagreement over wording, describing the situation as a serious policy contradiction.

“If Atiku’s position has not changed, why did one of his principal aides say the subsidy would be temporary and phased out?” he asked.

“Why did another senior aide have to publicly disown that explanation and introduce a completely different framework based on market conditions? And why did Atiku then step in to reaffirm the original position?”

The presidential aide said Nigerians needed to know exactly what Atiku meant by ‘targeted subsidy’ before he could ask them to support the proposal.

He challenged the ADC candidate to explain how much the policy would cost, who would benefit, how beneficiaries would be identified and where the funding would come from.

Onanuga also asked Atiku to state the economic conditions that would determine when the proposed subsidy would eventually end.

“Nigerians deserve clarity, not policy by trial and error,” he said.

Onanuga argued that Nigeria’s cost-of-living crisis could not be blamed entirely on petrol prices.

He said other factors, including agricultural productivity, insecurity, exchange rates, transportation and logistics costs, storage, flooding, input prices, money supply and supply constraints, also have a direct impact on the prices of goods and services.

According to him, the Tinubu administration has been working on these areas as part of its broader economic reforms.

The presidential aide therefore urged Atiku to present a comprehensive economic programme rather than making petrol subsidy the centrepiece of his campaign.

“Nigerians cannot afford another opaque and potentially costly subsidy regime dressed up in new language,” Onanuga said.

He further challenged the former vice president to be clear about whether he had a properly costed and workable petroleum policy.

“Either he has a coherent, costed, and workable petroleum policy, or he is simply playing politics with a policy that has significantly restored fiscal health to the three tiers of government and stabilised the macroeconomic environment,” he said.

Onanuga concluded that the Nigerian economy was too important to be subjected to what he described as policy somersaults, incoherence, populism and election gimmicks.