The Vice Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Rabiu Kwankwaso, has said an administration led by the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, would reintroduce fuel subsidy in a different form if elected in 2027.
Kwankwaso, a former Kano State governor, made the remarks during an interview with Arise TV on Tuesday while discussing the fuel subsidy policy of President Bola Tinubu’s administration and the positions of presidential candidates ahead of the 2027 election.
Asked whether the NDC would face difficulties campaigning in the North-West, where there is support for the return of fuel subsidy, Kwankwaso said the party would introduce its own approach to subsidising fuel.
“No, no, no, look. We are bringing subsidy in our own way,” he said.
Asked how the party intended to achieve this, Kwankwaso said the government could invest in refineries and increase domestic fuel production, allowing petrol to be sold to Nigerians at what he described as a reasonable price.
“Of course, there are many ways. One, I can tell you: now we have a refinery built by a businessman, and I’m sure more refineries would be built.
“Now, if individuals in this country could build refineries, I see no reason why government, under certain circumstances, will not build a refinery or refineries to the extent that we achieve the minimum requirement.
“What is the minimum requirement? The minimum requirement is for the people across the country to go to the filling stations and buy fuel at a reasonable price.
“We, in the NDC, will do whatever it takes, really, to put the price of oil down,” he said.
Kwankwaso criticises Tinubu’s subsidy removal
Kwankwaso also said the three major presidential candidates in the 2023 election had campaigned on removing fuel subsidy, but criticised Tinubu for implementing the policy immediately after assuming office.
According to him, while Tinubu, Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi had supported subsidy removal during the 2023 campaign, the current president implemented the policy without what Kwankwaso described as adequate consideration of its potential consequences.
“No, that’s what I know. Of course, among the three of them, Bola Tinubu decided to do so and removed the subsidy. And the consequences that we thought would happen, certainly happened.
“And not only he decided to remove the subsidy, what he did was to remove it immediately—in fact, day one—without looking at all those possible issues that were associated with that. And that’s how we find ourselves in this total mess, economically,” he said.
Tinubu announced the end of the petrol subsidy during his inauguration speech on May 29, 2023, declaring that “subsidy is gone.”
Following the announcement, petrol prices rose from below N200 per litre to more than N500 in many parts of the country, with the increase contributing to higher transport and other living costs.
