Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has criticised former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar over his pledge to restore fuel subsidy if elected president in 2027.

Atiku, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), made the promise during an interactive session on the first day of his 2027 campaign activities. He also accused the President Bola Tinubu administration of failing to account for funds saved from the removal of the subsidy.

Reacting to the former vice-president’s position while speaking with journalists in Abuja on Thursday, August 20, Wike accused Atiku of desperation and inconsistency.

“Atiku Abubakar, who is confused and a voodoo economist, will say anything just to be president. In 2022, he said he would remove the fuel subsidy because it was a fraud. Is he going back to the fraud that he had alleged was the fuel subsidy?” Wike said.

The FCT minister urged political leaders to remain consistent in their positions, stressing that leadership requires telling citizens the truth.

Wike also argued that developments in Nigeria’s petroleum sector have made a return to the previous broad fuel subsidy regime impractical.

He noted that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) had been commercialised under the Petroleum Industry Act and was no longer the sole importer or manager of refined petroleum products.

The minister further questioned how the government would subsidise petrol produced by privately owned refineries such as the Dangote Refinery.

“Is he going to give fuel subsidy in the Dangote Refinery? The fuel produced by Dangote Refinery, it’s not going to be possible. Tell people the simple truth,” he added.

Wike praised President Tinubu for ending the fuel subsidy regime, arguing that the policy had increased government revenue and consequently boosted allocations to the federal, state and local governments.

He maintained that without the reform, Nigeria would have continued to struggle with issues such as industrial strikes, delays in salary payments and unpaid pensions.

Wike Tackles Atiku Over Promise to Restore Fuel Subsidy

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