Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has strongly criticized the Federal Government’s proposed 30-day fuel discount, calling it a short-term and politically motivated measure that fails to address the real hardships caused by soaring fuel prices.
In a statement released by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication for the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Atiku accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of using the temporary discount as a political maneuver in response to Nigeria’s deepening cost-of-living crisis.
His remarks followed the government’s Thursday announcement that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) would offer discounted petrol for 30 days as part of a broader effort to cushion the impact of high fuel prices and stabilize pump rates. At a press briefing in Abuja, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy Taiwo Oyedele clarified that the discount was not a subsidy, but a government arrangement to sell petrol at cost.
Atiku, however, argued that the government had failed to provide genuine relief to Nigerians who have endured prolonged hardship, and he dismissed the 30-day initiative as an election-driven ploy. “I totally reject 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 further described the discount as “not an economic plan but a political bandage on a wound the government helped create.” Atiku questioned what would happen after the 30 days, warning that Nigerians would simply return to the same high costs for fuel, transportation, and food.
Atiku also criticized the limited scope of the intervention, noting it applies only at NNPC stations, and challenged the government to clarify exactly how much consumers would save and whether any savings would actually be passed on to passengers via lower fares.
He argued that the government’s move contradicts its earlier stance on relief measures, amounting to an admission of the severity of the hardship facing Nigerians. “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 reiterated his recommendation for capped and budgeted production support tied to domestically refined fuel, with safeguards to ensure benefits reach consumers and support local refineries. “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,” Atiku concluded, reaffirming his commitment to making life more affordable for Nigerians.
