Atiku: Tinubu’s Removal of Oil Subsidy is Economic Fraud Against Nigerians

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has denounced President Bola Tinubu's removal of the oil subsidy as an economic fraud against Nigerians. In a statement released by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku claimed that the government's propaganda fell apart under the weight of its own policies. He pointed out that the same administration that imposed market forces on Nigerian households had repeatedly intervened via fiscal measures to benefit major petroleum investors.

Atiku alleged that Tinubu's celebration of subsidy removal was a "biggest economic fraud sold to Nigerians." He pointed out that while the government claimed to have abolished subsidy, it simultaneously offered tax credits, concessions, and other fiscal incentives to petroleum operators. This, Atiku argued, contradicted the claim that subsidy was entirely eradicated.

The statement highlighted the audited accounts of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC), which recorded significant energy-security expenses in 2023 and 2024. Atiku suggested that these expenses arose from the difference between the regulated PMS ex-coastal price and the prevailing exchange rate when the import obligation was settled. This meant that the government was still absorbing a price differential even after Tinubu's announcement that subsidy was gone.

Atiku questioned where exactly the subsidy had gone if Nigerians were paying market prices and the Federation was still carrying trillions of naira in under-recovery and energy-security costs. He argued that the government cannot claim to have abolished subsidy while simultaneously providing fiscal benefits to major petroleum investors.

Atiku concluded that Tinubu's actions were a fraud that subjected Nigerian families to the harsh realities of economic hardship while offering preferential treatment to big oil money operators.