By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola
The All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council (APC-PCC) has challenged the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, to explain the legal and fiscal basis of his proposed “production subsidy” for locally refined petrol, insisting that the plan remains an uncosted promise without a clearly identified legal framework.
This was disclosed in a statement signed by the Spokesman of the APC-PCC, Dele Alake, on Sunday, 20 September, 2026.
According to the statement, Atiku, at a press conference in Abuja on Friday, 18 September,2026 reiterated his proposed subsidy, which he said would reduce pump prices, and further called on President Bola Tinubu to slash the cost of diesel and petrol.
The Campaign Council explained that the proposal raised important legal, fiscal and practical questions, citing Section 205(1) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, which provides that unrestricted free-market conditions shall determine wholesale and retail prices of petroleum products.
It noted that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), in a statement on Saturday, had clarified that it neither fixes pump prices nor issues administrative price templates except where statutory conditions for intervention are met, adding that no market failure had been declared at the moment.
The APC-PCC asked Atiku to clarify whether a refinery receiving his proposed subsidy would be required to sell petrol at a prescribed price, stressing that if the answer was yes, he should identify the legal framework under which such a price condition would be imposed, and if no, explain how public support to refiners would guarantee lower prices at filling stations without an enforceable mechanism.
The Campaign Council further demanded that Atiku disclose the cost of his proposal and its funding source, explaining that his earlier statement suggested the intervention could take the form of preferentially priced crude for domestic refineries, a discount it said would reduce the value accruing to the Federation and, consequently, the revenue available to federal, state and local governments.
“Based on publicly reported refinery throughput and domestic petrol-supply figures, the cost of the new subsidy could run as high as N17 or N21 trillion annually, depending on the discount size, the volume covered, and whether the support applies to the entire barrel or only to petrol sold domestically,” the statement read.
The APC-PCC listed seven questions it said Nigerians deserved answers to, including the proposed subsidy rate, the annual spending ceiling, the volume of crude or petrol to be covered, the source of funding, the mechanism guaranteeing lower pump prices, safeguards against diversion, smuggling and fraudulent claims, and whether amendments to the PIA would be required.
The Campaign Council also asked Atiku to reconcile his latest position with his previous support for downstream deregulation, recalling that he had, in November 2022 at the Lagos Business School, described the petrol subsidy system as fraudulent and pledged to complete its removal, reminding his audience that he chaired the committee that removed its first and second phases. It contrasted this with a post on X on August 25, 2026, in which Atiku reportedly announced, “I will restore it!”
Providing historical context, the statement noted that the deregulation of Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector began under the Obasanjo-Atiku administration, with diesel deregulated in June 2003 and aviation fuel moved to market pricing under the same administration, while the Buhari administration deregulated kerosene in 2016, leaving petrol as the last major product retained under the old subsidy regime before it was scheduled to end in June 2023 under the PIA.
The APC-PCC further stated that the development of the PIA spanned about two decades, beginning in 2000 during the first term of the administration in which Atiku served as Vice President, and questioned how his new proposal aligned with the legal and regulatory framework that emerged from that process.
Highlighting the Tinubu administration’s alternative approach, the statement disclosed that the government had focused on expanding lower-cost transport alternatives through compressed natural gas (CNG) and electric mass transit, converting more than 120,000 vehicles to CNG, with thousands more converted privately, while working with state governments to extend the savings nationwide.
Quoting President Tinubu’s statement issued on Saturday, the APC-PCC recalled the transport cost reduction programme agreed with the governors of the 36 states on August 27.
“From October 1, more Nigerians should begin to see measurable reductions in transportation costs,” Tinubu said.
The statement disclosed that commuters in seven states and the Federal Capital Territory were already paying between 31 and 83 per cent less on routes served by CNG and electric buses.
It explained that in Borno State, services charge between N50 and N100 on routes where commercial operators charge between N300 and N600, while passengers on the Suleja-Abuja service in Niger State pay N550 instead of about N800.
It further disclosed that Kaduna’s free CNG buses carried more than 1.4 million passengers in five months of 2025, saving residents an estimated N1.39 billion in fares, while alternative-energy transport in Adamawa State had reduced fares by as much as 50 per cent, and Abia State had deployed 40 electric buses and 20 charging stations.
In contrast, the campaign council accused Atiku of reaching into Nigeria’s past with another subsidy scheme that would enrich smugglers, stressing that he had yet to disclose its cost or the law under which it would operate.
“President Tinubu urges Nigerians to ignore politicians who want to drag the country back to the subsidy era. That road leads to mounting debt, petrol queues, payments pocketed by smugglers and cheap Nigerian fuel subsidised for the whole of West Africa,” the statement read.
The APC-PCC disclosed that Nigeria would continue to operate a deregulated market that had supported increased investment in domestic refining, noting that the Dangote Petroleum Refinery had reached its nameplate capacity of 650,000 barrels per day and reportedly achieved 700,000 barrels per day during performance tests, while also launching an initial public offering targeting N2.1 trillion for expansion.
While acknowledging the pressure higher petrol prices place on Nigerian families, the campaign council said the Tinubu administration would continue to implement supportive policies, noting that petrol sold for about N830 per litre before the Middle East crisis pushed crude oil prices above $100 per barrel, and that a de-escalation of the crisis could help reduce crude oil prices and, consequently, pump prices both in Nigeria and worldwide.
It disclosed that the NMDPRA was working with the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission against price-gouging, and with the Nigeria Customs Service against the diversion of petroleum products across the country’s borders.
The APC-PCC maintained that every proposed intervention in the downstream sector must be lawful, transparent, properly costed and capable of delivering measurable benefits to consumers, insisting that Atiku should provide Nigerians with a detailed policy document and an independent legal and fiscal analysis of his proposal.
The Campaign Council further likened Atiku’s proposal to what former President Olusegun Obasanjo, in his book “My Watch,” described as Atiku’s “propensity for poor judgment,” advising him to study the PIA, as he appeared out of touch with the current dynamics of the oil sector.
