Atiku Warns Tinubu Over Fuel, Electricity Costs

By Nafiu Muhammad Lema

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to take immediate steps to reduce petrol prices and ease the rising cost of living, while warning the Federal Government against repeating what he described as the hardship associated with petrol subsidy removal with electricity.

Atiku made the call during a press conference in Abuja on Friday, where he addressed fuel prices, palliatives and the rising cost of living in Nigeria.

He argued that the removal of petrol subsidy in May 2023 had increased transportation, food, logistics and production costs, putting additional pressure on households, workers, farmers and businesses.

“When government makes energy expensive, it makes life expensive,” Atiku said.

According to him, the impact of high energy costs was being felt across the economy, with manufacturers, traders, farmers and workers struggling with declining purchasing power.

Atiku also criticised the reliance on palliatives to cushion the effects of economic hardship, arguing that temporary interventions should not replace policies designed to address the underlying causes of rising costs.

“Palliatives manage pain. Good policy addresses the source of the pain,” he said.

The former Vice President further expressed concern over plans to phase out electricity subsidies from 2027, saying households and businesses were already struggling with high electricity costs.

He said small businesses and manufacturers were spending heavily on electricity, diesel and alternative sources of power to remain operational.

“The barber needs electricity for his clippers. The tailor needs it for her machines. The frozen-food seller needs it to preserve her stock,” Atiku said.

“The welder needs it for his equipment. The manufacturer needs it to keep the factory alive.”

Atiku urged the Federal Government to draw lessons from the experience of petrol subsidy removal before proceeding with changes to electricity subsidies.

“The lesson of petrol must not be repeated with electricity. Do not remove first and think later. Do not impose the pain first and search for palliatives afterwards,” he said.

“When energy becomes unaffordable, everything becomes unaffordable.”

He also urged President Tinubu to use what he described as the remaining eight months of his administration to provide relief to Nigerians, saying policy differences should not prevent the government from adopting measures capable of reducing economic pressure.

Atiku said he was prepared to compete with Tinubu politically but would not allow political rivalry to come ahead of Nigerians’ welfare.

“I am prepared to compete with you politically. But I will never compete with the welfare of the Nigerian people. The presidency may be contested. The wellbeing of Nigerians should never be,” he said.

On petrol prices, Atiku said Tinubu could adopt his proposal for government intervention even if the administration chose to rename the policy or take credit for it.

“Bola Tinubu should not be ashamed to do what is necessary to lower the price of petrol simply because Atiku Abubakar proposed a government intervention,” he said.

“He should just take the idea. Rename it if he wishes. And even take the credit. What matters to me is that Nigerians pay less.”

Atiku said his broader economic approach was focused on increasing production, creating jobs, strengthening purchasing power and improving living standards.

“Nigerians do not live on statistics. They live on what their hard-earned money can buy,” he said.