By Ogungbayi Adeyemi S. | adeyemi@ddnewsonline.com
Editor, DDNews |
Abuja, Nigeria – August 31, 2026
DDNewsOnline
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has defended President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms, saying the removal of petrol subsidy has increased government revenues and improved the business environment.
However, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has challenged the President to account for the trillions of naira generated from fuel subsidy removal and explain what Nigerians have gained from the reforms.
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The ADC, through a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, reacted to comments by Senator Abdul’aziz Yari, Director-General of the President’s re-election campaign.
The party said Yari’s comments were significant because he was speaking as the person responsible for persuading Nigerians to give Tinubu another four-year term.
“If the message of the President’s re-election campaign is that Nigerians must accept today’s hardship as permanent and anyone promising relief is a liar, then Nigerians must be seriously concerned,” the party said.
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According to figures attributed to the Minister of Finance, subsidy removal and foreign exchange reforms generated about N15.8 trillion in additional resources for the Federation between June 2023 and December 2025.
Of this amount, about N5.4 trillion went to the Federal Government, N5.4 trillion to states and N3.9 trillion to local governments.
The ADC said states reportedly received N47.25 trillion in Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) allocations between 2023 and 2025, rising from N10.09 trillion in 2023 to N15.26 trillion in 2024 and N21.90 trillion in 2025.
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“Monthly FAAC distributions have since crossed N2 trillion, compared with less than N1 trillion around the period before subsidy removal. Yet, while government revenues soared, Nigerians became poorer,” it said.
The party noted that petrol prices rose from about N185 per litre in May 2023 to more than N1,300 in many locations by August 2025, while food inflation exceeded 40 per cent at points during the period. Transport costs also surged, while the promised compressed natural gas (CNG) mass-transit alternative had yet to reach Nigerians on the required scale.
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“The contradiction is impossible to ignore. Government is counting trillions while Nigerian families are counting the meals they can afford. If governments are receiving substantially more money, why are Nigerians getting substantially less food to eat?” the party asked.
The ADC challenged Yari and the APC to explain whether Nigerians were better off after three years of what it described as unprecedented sacrifice.
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“Before asking Nigerians for four more years, Senator Yari and the APC must answer one question: after N15.8 trillion in additional resources, record FAAC allocations and three years of unprecedented sacrifice, are Nigerians better off?”
The party also expressed concern that increased revenues had coincided with increased borrowing by state governments, noting that about 20 states reportedly borrowed N458 billion in 2025 despite higher FAAC receipts.
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“After N47.25 trillion to states in three years, Nigerians have a right to ask: where are the results? If states received an additional N5.4 trillion from the reforms, let the government publish the projects. Show Nigerians the schools, hospitals, roads, and mass-transit systems that their sacrifice paid for.”
The ADC described as “disgraceful” the government’s inability, in its view, to show tangible improvements from the additional revenues, arguing that workers’ salaries could no longer guarantee food on the table.
It also criticised the level of budget implementation, infrastructure development and security, saying local contractors remained unpaid and major public roads were in poor condition.
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“If Senator Yari says subsidy can never return, then he must tell Nigerians what the President’s campaign is offering instead. What is the plan to dramatically reduce petrol prices and bring down food and transportation costs before 2027? ‘Endure’ is not an economic policy,” the party said.
“Nigerians have sacrificed enough. They need a break.”
Presidency Defends Reforms
Defending Tinubu’s economic reforms, the Technical Assistant on Regional Development Programmes in the Office of the Vice President, Dr Hafiz Abdullahi, said ongoing economic initiatives were restoring confidence in Nigeria’s business environment and creating new opportunities for entrepreneurs.
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Abdullahi spoke during the unveiling of Makib Estilo, a new business outlet in the Central Area of Abuja, by the Minister of Women Affairs, Hajiya Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim.
The minister noted that businesses were witnessing rapid growth because the Tinubu administration was supporting micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) through targeted intervention funds, single-digit loans and free business formalisation drives.
Abdullahi challenged opposition politicians criticising the reforms to engage directly with businesses and ordinary Nigerians before concluding that the policies had worsened economic conditions.
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“They should judge us with clean eyes. They should open their eyes, interact and come to us and ask questions instead of using hearsay.
“They should relate with us with an open mind. If they really do that, I think they will see how the economic reforms are affecting the country more positively.”
She identified developments in the foreign exchange market as a major factor contributing to renewed confidence among entrepreneurs.
“The Renewed Hope Agenda, as we all know, coming from the Presidency, is one of the greatest things happening to Nigeria. This is one of the administrations that has done well for entrepreneurs.”
APC Chairman Warns Against Return to Subsidy
Also, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Nentawe Yilwatda, warned Nigerians against calls by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to restore fuel subsidy, saying such a policy could reverse gains recorded under the ongoing economic reforms.
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Yilwatda said returning to the old subsidy regime could lead to fuel queues, threaten the sustainability of the new minimum wage and affect government funding for education and other essential services.
“Subsidy may appear attractive because it promises cheaper petrol, but Nigerians must also ask the bigger question: who pays for the subsidy and what happens to the resources that government must divert to finance it?
“A policy cannot be judged only by its immediate benefit at the pump. We must examine its impact on government revenues, salaries, pensions, education, healthcare, infrastructure and the overall capacity of government to meet its obligations to citizens.”
He attributed the improved fiscal position of many states to increased federal allocations following the removal of fuel subsidy.
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Donald Duke: Fuel Subsidy Debate is a ‘Scam’
Meanwhile, former Cross River State Governor and presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Donald Duke, dismissed Nigeria’s fuel subsidy debate as a “scam”, saying petrol could sell for about N200 per litre if the country properly harnessed its crude oil resources and other petroleum products.
“Look, I don’t believe there’s any subsidy in fuel,” Duke said.
“For a barrel of crude oil, there are about seven by-products. The two consequential ones are diesel and petrol, PMS and AGO, and kerosene, aviation fuel and all those things.
“You sell them at commercial rates, okay? Work it out. You can almost sell petrol today at N200 a litre, not the N1,000-plus.
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“So that thing about subsidy, I think, is the biggest scam that has been perpetrated, maybe globally.”
Duke also questioned why Nigeria continued to face energy challenges despite its abundant natural resources, listing hydrocarbons, solar, hydro, uranium and lithium among the country’s energy assets.
“Why are we still energy-poor? Because the political will is not there. But even beyond the political will, we’re not thinking through this.”
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By Ogungbayi Adeyemi S. (Beedee)
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