By Lizzy Chirkpi
The Presidential Campaign Council of the All Progressives Congress (APC-PCC) has challenged former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to provide the legal, fiscal and operational details of his proposed “production subsidy” for locally refined petrol.
The APC-PCC, in a statement issued on Sunday by its spokesman, Dele Alake, said Atiku’s proposal to support domestic refiners and reduce petrol prices raised questions about how such an intervention would operate within Nigeria’s existing petroleum-sector regulatory framework.
Alake cited Section 205(1) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, which provides for market conditions to determine the wholesale and retail prices of petroleum products.
The statement also referenced a recent position by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), which said it does not fix pump prices or issue administrative price templates except where statutory conditions for intervention are met.
The APC-PCC therefore challenged Atiku to explain whether refiners benefiting from his proposed intervention would be required to sell petrol at a government-prescribed price.
“Atiku should therefore explain whether a refinery receiving his proposed subsidy would be required to sell petrol at a prescribed price,” the statement said.
According to Alake, if the answer is yes, Atiku should identify the legal framework that would permit the government to impose such a condition. If the answer is no, he should explain how subsidising refiners would guarantee lower pump prices for consumers.
“Without an enforceable mechanism, refiners could receive the benefit while consumers continued to pay market prices,” he said.
The APC-PCC also questioned the estimated cost of the proposal and how it would be financed.
The statement said Atiku had previously suggested that the intervention could involve making crude oil available to domestic refineries at preferential prices.
Alake argued that any discount on crude supplied to local refineries could reduce the value accruing to the Federation and consequently affect government revenue.
The APC-PCC estimated that, depending on the assumptions used, the proposed intervention could cost between N17 trillion and N21 trillion annually.
It stressed, however, that the actual cost would depend on the size of the proposed discount, the volume of crude or petrol covered, and whether the support would apply to the entire barrel or only to petrol sold domestically.
The council called on Atiku to disclose the proposed subsidy rate, annual spending ceiling, volume to be covered, funding source and mechanisms for preventing diversion, smuggling and fraudulent claims.
It also asked him to state whether amendments to the PIA would be necessary to implement the proposal.
“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,” the statement said.
The APC-PCC further challenged Atiku to reconcile his latest position with his previous statements supporting the removal of petrol subsidy.
It recalled that Atiku, speaking at the Lagos Business School in November 2022, described the petrol subsidy system as fraudulent and pledged to complete its removal.
The council also cited an August 25, 2026 post by Atiku on X in which he wrote, “I will restore it!”
The APC-PCC said Atiku should explain how his proposed production subsidy differs from the previous subsidy regime and how it would avoid the problems associated with the former system.
The council argued that Nigeria’s downstream petroleum reforms had evolved over several administrations, noting that diesel was deregulated in June 2003 during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, when Atiku served as vice president.
It also noted that aviation fuel moved to market pricing under the same administration, while kerosene was deregulated in 2016.
According to the APC-PCC, petrol was the last major petroleum product to remain under the subsidy regime before the implementation of the PIA reforms.
While challenging Atiku’s proposal, the APC-PCC highlighted the Tinubu administration’s investments in alternative-energy transportation, particularly compressed natural gas (CNG) and electric buses.
According to the statement, more than 120,000 vehicles have been converted to CNG, while several states have introduced CNG and electric mass-transit initiatives.
The council said commuters in seven states and the Federal Capital Territory were already benefiting from lower fares on routes served by CNG and electric buses.
It cited Borno State, where it said fares on some routes had fallen to between N50 and N100 from commercial rates of N300 to N600, and the Suleja-Abuja route in Niger State, where passengers reportedly pay N550 instead of about N800.
It also cited Kaduna’s CNG bus programme, which it said carried more than 1.4 million passengers in five months in 2025 and saved residents an estimated N1.39 billion in fares.
The council said alternative-energy transportation had also reduced fares in Adamawa State, while Abia State had deployed 40 electric buses and 20 charging stations.
President Bola Tinubu, according to the statement, had urged Nigerians to expect further reductions in transportation costs following an agreement reached with state governors on August 27.
The APC-PCC also pointed to increased domestic refining capacity as evidence of what it described as the benefits of downstream deregulation.
It cited the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, which has a stated nameplate capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, and noted reports that the facility had reached 700,000 barrels per day during performance tests.
The council also referenced the refinery’s planned public offering aimed at raising funds for expansion.
On current pump prices, the APC-PCC acknowledged the pressure higher petrol costs have placed on households but attributed recent increases partly to international crude oil market conditions following the Middle East crisis.
It said petrol, which sold for about N830 per litre before the crisis, had been affected by crude oil prices rising above $100 per barrel.
The council said 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.
Concluding, the APC-PCC urged Atiku to publish a detailed policy document and obtain independent legal and fiscal analysis of his proposed intervention.
“The APC-PCC believes that every proposed intervention in the downstream sector must be lawful, transparent, properly costed and capable of delivering measurable benefits to consumers,” Alake said.
He also urged Atiku to read the Petroleum Industry Act, accusing the former vice president of being out of touch with developments in the oil sector.
The APC-PCC further referred to a characterisation of Atiku in former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s memoir, My Watch, in support of its criticism of the former vice president.