Ahead of the 2027 election, the presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement, Seyi Makinde; the candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi; the APM National Leader and Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed; and other opposition figures have unveiled a “Reset Nigeria” agenda, expressing confidence that Nigerians’ votes will count in the next general election.
The unveiling took place on Monday during the inauguration of the APM presidential campaign office in Abuja.
Speaking at the event, Makinde rejected a return to fuel subsidy.
He, however, advocated domestic crude pricing for Nigerian refineries as an alternative to make petrol more affordable.
On May 29, 2023, President Bola Tinubu, in his inauguration speech, announced the removal of petrol subsidy.
The policy led to higher prices of goods and services, although the All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government has continued to argue that it has delivered substantial economic benefits.
Ahead of the 2027 election, former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, who had pledged during the 2023 campaign to scrap the subsidy if elected, now promised to restore it if elected president to ease the impact of its removal on Nigerians.
Atiku’s pledge has sparked mixed reactions among Nigerians.
Speaking on Monday, Makinde rejected Atiku’s proposal and offered an alternative to the way Tinubu was managing the post-subsidy era, questioning why crude supplied to Nigerian refineries should be priced as though the country did not produce crude oil.
He stressed that Nigeria’s oil must provide tangible and measurable benefits to Nigerians.
Makinde called for complete transparency across the petroleum value chain — from production and domestic crude allocation to refining, transportation, distribution, taxes, and retail margins.
He said: “I have spoken about the petrol pricing framework. Some people have asked whether I am suggesting that we bring back the old fuel subsidy. That is not my position. Let me explain my position very simply with this example.
“If a community grows food, the people of that community should not have to buy that food as though it travelled halfway around the world before reaching them. So, why should crude oil supplied to Nigerian refineries be priced as though Nigeria does not produce crude oil?”
Emphasising that Nigerians must benefit directly from their crude resources, Makinde said Nigerians deserved to know what they were paying for, who benefited from the payments and where inefficiencies were driving up the final price, stressing that this was what the Reset Nigeria agenda was all about.
The APM presidential candidate continued, “Nigerians must be able to see how the final price is reached. We need complete transparency across the petroleum value chain—from production and domestic crude allocation to refining, transportation, distribution, taxes and retail margins.
“That benefit should be built into the system from the beginning, through the price at which crude oil is supplied for domestic refining — not through an opaque intervention at the petrol pump after all the costs, inefficiencies and distortions have been added.”
He explained that the Reset Nigeria agenda was fundamentally about ending opaque systems and restoring public trust: “Government must show its workings. Nigerians must be able to see how decisions are made and how national resources are managed.”
Inviting Nigerians to join the Reset Nigeria movement, Makinde said: “Reset Nigeria cannot be a conversation among politicians alone. It must become a conversation in our homes, markets, schools, offices, farms, factories and communities.
“We want to hear from the trader who struggles whenever transport costs rise. We want to hear from the farmer who cannot afford to move produce to the market. We want to hear from the business owner whose costs rise every time the price of fuel changes.
“We want to hear from the young Nigerian who is working hard but can no longer see a clear path to a better life. This office belongs to that conversation. Its doors are open to Nigerians who believe that our country can work better than it does today. So, I invite you: join the Reset Nigeria conversation.”
He said he was aware that some people had already dismissed his presidential campaign as insignificant but noted that he had faced similar doubts when he first sought to govern Oyo State.
Makinde recalled that many had doubted his chances against established political forces, only for the people of Oyo State to prove them wrong.
He said those dismissing his campaign were, in effect, disregarding the aspirations of millions of Nigerians, including traders, youths, farmers, workers and small-business owners who believed the country can be better.
“They may discount one candidate, but they cannot discount millions of Nigerians united behind a better future. Let us build a country in which government is transparent, leadership is accountable, and Nigeria’s resources work for the Nigerian people,” he said.
In his remarks, Obi called on political leaders and Nigerians at large to unite in the collective effort to rescue the country from poverty, hunger and insecurity.
The former Anambra State governor said Makinde was qualified to contest for the presidency, stressing that whoever emerges victorious in a credible election should be supported by all Nigerians to build a better country.
He stated, “What we are doing today is to show you that, for us, we don’t have desperation. We want the people of Nigeria to make their choice. Whoever they choose, all of us will come together to build a new Nigeria.
