Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticised the Federal Government’s proposed 30-day petrol discount, describing it as a temporary fix that would not address the persistent hardship caused by high fuel prices.
Atiku, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, reacted in a statement issued by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, following Thursday’s announcement that petrol prices at Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) stations would be discounted for an initial 30 days.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said the measure was designed to cushion the impact of high fuel prices and stabilise pump prices, insisting it was not a subsidy but a cost-based arrangement.
Atiku, however, accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of using temporary relief as a political response to the rising cost of living ahead of the 2027 elections.
“Atiku totally rejects this calendar-scheduled, election-laced subsidy package. Nigerians are not fools to be offered a month of discounted fuel after years of punishing prices and then expected to forget the hardship when the discount expires. This is shameless and heartless,” he said.
He described the intervention as “not an economic plan but a political bandage on a wound the government had helped create,” questioning what would happen when the discount expires on the 31st day.
“What happens on Day 31? Nigerians wake up to the same brutal prices, the same punishing transport fares and the same rising cost of food. The government cannot manufacture relief for one month and expect Nigerians to applaud while the hardship remains,” he said.
Atiku also questioned why the discount was limited to NNPCL stations, how much motorists would save per litre and whether transport operators would pass the savings on to passengers.
He argued that the intervention supported his proposal for production-based assistance tied to fuel refined in Nigeria, with safeguards to protect consumers while supporting domestic refining.
“This volte-face proves that the production-support proposal I have advanced is workable, achievable and not complicated. The Tinubu government and its spin doctors have tried to make it sound impossible, yet they are now reaching for a temporary subsidy-style intervention because the pain has become impossible to ignore,” Atiku said.
He added: “Nigerians need lasting relief, not a countdown to the return of hardship. Tinubu’s government cannot spend years telling Nigerians to endure, then offer 30 days of relief and call it a solution.”
