The All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council (APC-PCC) has challenged former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to explain the legal, fiscal and operational framework for his proposal to introduce a production subsidy for petrol refined locally.
In a statement issued on Sunday, Dele Alake, spokesman for the APC-PCC, questioned how the proposed subsidy would operate within the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, particularly its provisions on the pricing of petroleum products.
Alake cited Section 205(1) of the PIA, which provides that unrestricted free-market conditions shall determine the wholesale and retail prices of petroleum products.
He also referred to a recent statement by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), which said it does not fix petrol pump prices or issue administrative price templates except where the statutory conditions for intervention are met.
“Atiku should therefore explain whether a refinery receiving his proposed subsidy would be required to sell petrol at a prescribed price,” Alake said.
“If the answer is yes, he should identify the legal framework under which the government would impose that price condition and explain how it would operate consistently with the Petroleum Industry Act.”
According to Alake, if refiners are not required to reduce their selling prices, the former vice-president would also need to explain how a government subsidy to producers would translate into lower prices for consumers.
“If the answer is no, he should explain how public support to refiners would guarantee lower prices at filling stations,” he said. “Without an enforceable mechanism, refiners could receive the benefit while consumers continued to pay market prices.”
Atiku, in his recent policy proposal, advocated a transparent production subsidy for petroleum products refined in Nigeria and sold to Nigerian consumers. He has also called for measures to reduce the cost of petrol and diesel.
Alake further questioned the potential fiscal implications of the proposal, particularly the suggestion that the government could provide crude oil to domestic refineries at preferential prices.
“Any discount on crude would reduce the value accruing to the Federation and, consequently, the revenue available to the federal, state and local governments,” he said.
The APC-PCC estimated that the cost of the proposed intervention could reach between N17 trillion and N21 trillion annually, depending on the subsidy rate, volume covered and the precise structure of the programme.
However, the council said the assumptions behind any such estimate needed to be made explicit.
Alake called on Atiku to disclose “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, the safeguards against diversion, smuggling and fraudulent claims,” as well as whether amendments to the PIA would be necessary.
“An appropriation by the National Assembly may authorise expenditure, but it would not by itself resolve every regulatory question arising under the Petroleum Industry Act,” he said.
“If Atiku intends to amend the law, he should say so plainly.”
The APC-PCC also questioned what it described as a change in Atiku’s position on petrol subsidy.
Alake recalled that Atiku, speaking at the Lagos Business School in November 2022, had described the petrol subsidy regime as fraudulent and pledged to complete its removal.
“He reminded his audience that he chaired the committee that removed its first and second phases, and promised to complete the process,” Alake said.
The spokesman also cited Atiku’s August 25, 2026 statement in which he declared: “I will restore it!”
Alake said Atiku should explain how the proposed production subsidy differs from the previous subsidy regime and how it would prevent problems associated with the former system, including smuggling, diversion and fiscal losses.
The APC-PCC also placed the debate within the broader history of downstream petroleum deregulation in Nigeria.
According to Alake, diesel was deregulated in June 2003 during the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo, in which Atiku served as vice-president, while aviation fuel also moved to market pricing. Kerosene was deregulated in 2016 under the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
The spokesman argued that the Petroleum Industry Act, which emerged after years of reform efforts, provides the current legal framework governing the downstream sector.
He therefore urged Atiku to explain how his proposal would fit within that framework.
The APC-PCC also defended the Tinubu administration’s approach of expanding alternative energy and public transportation options, including compressed natural gas (CNG) and electric buses.
Alake said more than 120,000 vehicles had been converted to CNG, with additional conversions carried out privately.
He cited government figures showing reduced fares on CNG and electric-bus routes in several states.
“In Borno State, the services charge between ₦50 and ₦100 on routes where commercial operators charge between ₦300 and ₦600,” he said.
“Passengers on the Suleja–Abuja service in Niger State pay ₦550 instead of about ₦800.”
He also said Kaduna’s free CNG buses transported more than 1.4 million passengers in five months of 2025, resulting in an estimated ₦1.39 billion in savings for commuters.
Alake said alternative-energy transport initiatives in Adamawa had reduced fares by as much as 50 per cent, while Abia State had deployed 40 electric buses and 20 charging stations.
The APC-PCC maintained that the government would continue to pursue measures aimed at reducing transportation costs while allowing market forces to determine petroleum prices.
The council acknowledged the pressure higher petrol prices have placed on households but argued that global crude oil prices remain an important factor in domestic pump prices.
According to Alake, petrol sold for about ₦830 per litre before the recent Middle East crisis pushed crude oil prices above $100 per barrel.
“A de-escalation of the crisis could help reduce crude oil prices and, consequently, the pump prices of petrol and diesel, not just in Nigeria, but worldwide,” he said.
He added that the NMDPRA was working with the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission on alleged price-gouging and with the Nigeria Customs Service on the diversion of petroleum products across Nigeria’s borders.
The APC-PCC said Atiku should publish a detailed policy document alongside an independent legal and fiscal analysis of his proposal.
“Every proposed intervention in the downstream sector must be lawful, transparent, properly costed and capable of delivering measurable benefits to consumers,” Alake said.
“Until he does so, his production-subsidy plan remains an uncosted promise without a clearly identified legal or operational framework.”
Alake concluded by urging Atiku to study the PIA and accused him of being out of touch with current developments in Nigeria’s oil sector.
The statement also cited former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s description of Atiku in his memoir, My Watch, referring to what Obasanjo called Atiku’s “propensity for poor judgment.”
The latest exchange comes amid an ongoing political debate over how Nigeria should balance lower petrol prices, domestic refining, consumer protection, government revenue and the deregulation of the downstream petroleum sector.
