2027: ADC insists on restoring fuel subsidy, defends action

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has said it would restore fuel subsidy through increased domestic production if elected into power, arguing that Nigerians are too poor to bear the full cost of petroleum products under market forces.

The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said the government had a responsibility to protect citizens’ welfare and reduce the cost of living rather than transfer the burden of economic adjustment to an already impoverished population.

Abdullahi stated this on Monday while speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, where he criticised the Federal Government’s decision to remove fuel subsidy and defended the ADC’s position that making life more affordable for Nigerians would be central to its campaign ahead of the 2027 general elections.

According to him, the government’s economic policies since 2023 have placed additional pressure on households, despite official claims of improved foreign reserves, exchange-rate stability and increased investor confidence.

“We have to look at this issue from an ideological point of view. The government has to first of all admit that it has a primary responsibility to improve the livelihood of people and to protect the livelihood of the people.

“The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria says that the primary role of government is to protect the security and well-being of the people. Any policy option that does not improve the well-being, security and welfare of the people has to be reconsidered,” he said.

The ADC spokesman accused the administration of President Bola Tinubu of insisting that there was no alternative to subsidy removal without adequately addressing the consequences for ordinary Nigerians.

He also questioned the terms of crude oil-backed financing arrangements allegedly entered into by the government, including projects identified as Project Gazelle and Project Leopard, arguing that such agreements could compromise future oil revenues.

Abdullahi said Nigerians deserved to know the terms, interest rates and implications of the agreements, including whether the National Assembly had been adequately informed before commitments were made against future crude oil supplies.

“They tell us that the foreign reserves have gone up and the naira is stable. But what they are not telling us is that they have done so at the expense of the future crude and resources of Nigeria,” he said.

He argued that the government should prioritise affordable living conditions, particularly as millions of Nigerians struggle with rising transportation, food, housing, education and healthcare costs.

“The African Democratic Congress and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar are saying that Nigerians are too poor to be left to market forces. We cannot have a people so poor and leave them without subsidy.

“We are going to subsidise production. Whatever we need to do to subsidise the production of crude and deliver cheaper fuel to Nigerians, we are going to do it,” Abdullahi said.

He maintained that reducing petrol prices should not depend solely on the international price of crude oil, adding that the government could intervene in other parts of the petroleum value chain to lower production and distribution costs.

The ADC spokesman also rejected comparisons between petrol prices in Nigeria and the United States, arguing that differences in public transportation, education and healthcare systems made the comparison inappropriate.

According to him, Nigerians face multiple expenses that leave households with little disposable income, making high fuel prices particularly burdensome.

“In Nigeria, you pay for fuel, you pay for transport, you pay for rent, you pay for food, you pay for security, you pay for a generator and you pay for primary school,” he said.

Abdullahi further criticised what he described as wasteful government spending, questioning the administration’s claim that it could no longer afford fuel subsidies while continuing to commit resources to major infrastructure projects.

He cited the controversial coastal highway project, arguing that a lack of transparency in procurement and contract terms had raised questions about the management of public funds.

On the government’s recent 30-day fuel discount arrangement, Abdullahi said the initiative did not amount to a comprehensive response to the economic hardship facing Nigerians.

He questioned why the Federal Government would promote a discount arrangement by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) as a major intervention when petrol prices remained high.

The ADC spokesman also argued that the government should recruit qualified economists to help address the country’s economic challenges, while clarifying that his criticism of the Finance Minister was not a declaration that the minister was incompetent.

He said the party’s economic position was centred on affordability, insisting that policies should be assessed by their impact on citizens’ living conditions rather than by macroeconomic indicators alone.

On the 2027 presidential election, Abdullahi dismissed claims by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) that President Tinubu could secure victory in 20 states, saying the election would be determined by Nigerians’ experience of the current administration.

He described the contest as a battle between the APC and Nigerians dissatisfied with the rising cost of living.

“We have been saying from day one that this election is going to be Nigerians versus the APC. This campaign is taking off on an issue that matters most to Nigerians, and that is the cost of living,” he said.

Abdullahi said the ADC believed voters would judge the administration based on its performance over the past three years, rather than political calculations involving party leaders and state-by-state projections.

He also criticised the handling of the coastal highway project, describing it as an example of the need for greater transparency in public procurement.

On fuel price modulation and the 30-day discount arrangement, he accused the government of creating confusion over its intervention, insisting that Nigerians remained unconvinced that the measures would substantially ease their economic difficulties.