Atiku Once Backed Subsidy Removal, Now Wants It Back — Oshiomhole

Senator Adams Oshiomhole, former president of the Nigeria Labour Congress NLC, has criticised former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s plan to restore fuel subsidy if elected president in 2027.

Oshiomhole said Atiku had previously explained to him why petroleum subsidy should be removed while serving as vice president.

The former Edo governor made the remarks during an interview with TVC on Tuesday while reacting to Atiku’s campaign promise to introduce a targeted subsidy to reduce fuel costs.

Oshiomhole recalled his interactions with Atiku when he was NLC president, saying the former vice president had argued that petroleum subsidy was wasteful and should be eliminated.

He questioned the consistency between that position and Atiku’s current proposal to restore a form of subsidy.

Atiku, the African Democratic Congress ADC presidential candidate, has said he would introduce a targeted production subsidy for petroleum products refined in Nigeria if elected in 2027.

He has argued that the measure would reduce energy costs, ease transportation expenses and improve Nigerians’ purchasing power.

Oshiomhole also referred to Atiku’s 2023 proposal to privatise the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation NNPC, questioning how a privately owned company could operate while the government continued to determine the selling price of its products.

The senator said the combination of private ownership and government-controlled pricing raised questions about how such a policy would work in practice.

Atiku’s current position differs from his previous support for the removal of petroleum subsidy, with his campaign now presenting the proposed intervention as targeted support for domestically refined products rather than the former system of subsidising imported petrol.

Oshiomhole said the change in position warranted scrutiny as political parties and candidates prepare for the 2027 presidential election.