The African Democratic Congress (ADC), has warned that President Bola Tinubu could introduce a five per cent fuel tax if re-elected in 2027, potentially pushing petrol prices above N1,500 per litre.
Bolaji Abdullahi, National Publicity Secretary of the ADC stated this in a statement on Tuesday.
Taiwo Oyedele, Finance Minister, had said the federal government will introduce fuel taxes when the economy stabilises and Nigerians’ incomes can accommodate the additional costs.
Oyedele disclosed this during an exclusive interview on ARISE News on the sidelines of the 2026 International Monetary Fund and World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand.
Reacting, the ADC spokesman said, “They have already enacted the law for a five per cent tax on fuel under the Nigeria Tax Act. President Tinubu signed it into law in June 2025. If it has not been activated yet, it is because of re-election.”
He alleged that the administration could announce the measure after securing another term, drawing parallels with Tinubu’s declaration of fuel subsidy removal during his inauguration in May 2023.
The ADC said a five per cent surcharge on petrol selling at N1,450 per litre would raise the pump price to N1,522.50, increasing transportation, food distribution and household costs.
“This Tinubu-led APC never runs out of new ways to make survival more expensive,” Abdullahi said.
He argued that Nigerians needed economic relief rather than additional taxes.
The party also questioned the government’s justification that the levy would support road infrastructure and fuel-price stabilisation.
Abdullahi recalled that Tinubu opposed a proposed fuel tax in 2003 when he was Lagos State governor, describing it as “double taxation.”
The ADC urged Nigerians to consider its presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar’s proposed fuel production subsidy, which it said could reduce petrol prices and the broader cost of living.
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