- The ADC presidential campaign has raised a specific mathematical point about the timing of Tinubu's relief plan
- Phrank Shaibu cited a personal visit to an NNPC retail station where the promised fuel discount was nowhere to be found
- A registration form circulating under the name 'Arise for Tinubu 2027' is collecting voter IDs and bank details from Nigerians
Legit.ng journalist Adekunle Dada has over eight years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international issues
FCT, Abuja - The Atiku Abubakar campaign has described President Bola Tinubu's newly announced 90-day cost-of-living programme as a cynical electoral manoeuvre, pointing out that the plan's deadline falls after Nigerians cast their votes in an election now 86 days away.
Legit.ng reports that the National Economic Council backed a 90-day plan from the Finance Ministry covering five priority areas, including food affordability and investment reform.
Source: Facebook
Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication for the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, argued that the structure of the plan reveals its true purpose: voters are being asked to choose Tinubu first, with relief to follow only after polling day.
He argued that the structure of the plan reveals its true purpose: voters are being asked to choose Tinubu first, with relief to follow only after polling day.
Shaibu made the accusation at a press conference held at the ADC Secretariat, and the statement was made available to Legit.ng on Friday, October 23, 2026.
"This is election bait," Shaibu said. "A government cannot put a 90-day deadline on hunger, the cost-of-living crisis and insecurity and call it an economic policy."
The National Economic Council's plan outlines five focus areas: food affordability, tax harmonisation, completion of key infrastructure projects, removal of barriers to investment, and household support.
Shaibu acknowledged these are genuine problems but said the government had spent three and a half years ignoring them.
He pointed to the removal of the petrol subsidy as a defining moment, arguing that protection for low-income households should have come alongside that decision rather than years later.
Families have since cut meals, workers face higher commuting costs, and businesses have closed, he said.
Shaibu also questioned the government's separate fuel discount promotion run through NNPC Retail stations from 1 October, saying he visited a station personally and was told by attendants that no discount existed. He paid ₦1,405 per litre.
He demanded that NNPC publish how many customers received the ₦66-per-litre reduction, at which stations, and how many litres were sold at the discounted price.
With Tinubu due to visit Kaduna to launch his re-election campaign, Shaibu used the occasion to list the state's recent suffering: at least 85 civilians killed in an Army drone strike during a Maulud celebration in Tudun Biri on 3 December 2023; at least 24 civilians killed in a separate military airstrike in Giwa in September 2024; 152 people affected by an attack in Kachia in September 2025, with eight deaths and nine injuries recorded.
He also noted flooding in Zaria in September 2025 that left 476 people displaced and dozens injured, and windstorms in July 2025 that affected more than 6,000 people across five local government areas.
Shaibu said Tinubu's recorded September 2025 visit to the state included a wedding and a courtesy call, and demanded the president explain what has been done for victims of Tudun Biri before seeking another mandate in Kaduna.
The campaign also raised concerns about a registration form being circulated under the name "Arise for Tinubu 2027," which requests voter identification numbers, bank details and phone numbers. Shaibu demanded clarity on who is collecting the data, how it will be used, and whether it is connected to the government's household support programme.
"No Nigerian should have to hand over voter or bank details to a political group to receive public relief," he said.
Source: UGC
Atiku demands full breakdown of ₦10bn Ebola fund
Meanwhile, Legit.ng also reported that Atiku challenged the Tinubu administration to publish a full breakdown of the ₦10 billion announced for Ebola preparedness in June.
Atiku raised questions about a nine-day delay before the government publicly confirmed Nigeria's first Ebola case in Abuja after the patient sought care on October 11, 2026.
The statement also accused the government of planning to use the Ebola outbreak to discourage Nigerians from attending campaign rallies ahead of the 2027 elections.
Source: Legit.ng