Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has formally kicked off his campaign for the 2027 presidential election.
The former Anambra State governor has declared that his decision to contest is driven by the need to address the challenges confronting Nigeria.
Obi made the declaration on Friday in a live broadcast.
“I consider myself to be among those contesting to address the challenges Nigeria is currently facing. I join this contest with one firm conviction: Nigeria must work,” Obi said while addressing the nation.
The former governor is among the politicians expected to play a major role in the 2027 presidential contest.
Meanwhile, former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has promised to restore the petrol subsidy if elected president in 2027.
Atiku made the pledge during a Facebook Live session while responding to questions about the removal of the subsidy and its impact on Nigerians.
The former vice president said his position on the policy had changed following the removal of the subsidy by President Tinubu. He explained that although he did not initially oppose the decision, he was concerned about what had happened to the money the Federal Government said it would save from ending the programme.
“I initially did not oppose the removal of the fuel subsidy. But now that it has been removed, where is the money? Where has the subsidy money gone? Has it been used to improve healthcare, education or security?” Atiku asked.
He added, “If I win the presidential election, I will restore the subsidy. And anyone who stole Nigeria’s subsidy funds must return the money.”
President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of the petrol subsidy during his inauguration on May 29, 2023, arguing that the programme had become too expensive for the country to maintain.
The decision immediately led to an increase in petrol prices and contributed to higher transportation and food costs, placing additional pressure on households and businesses across the country.
The President had said the money previously spent on subsidising petrol would be redirected to infrastructure, healthcare, education, transportation and other areas intended to improve the welfare of Nigerians.
In a national broadcast on July 31, 2023, Tinubu maintained that the subsidy had become a major burden on the Nigerian economy.
“For several years, I have consistently maintained the position that the fuel subsidy had to go,” Tinubu said.
He argued that the subsidy had consumed trillions of naira annually and that the resources could instead be used to provide essential public services.
“Subsidy cost us trillions of Naira yearly,” the President said, adding that the funds could be better spent on “public transportation, healthcare, schools, housing and even national security.”
The disagreement over the policy between Atiku and the Tinubu administration continued after the initial removal.
In June 2024, Atiku accused the Federal Government of continuing to support petrol consumption despite its position that the subsidy regime had ended.
His allegation followed reports that government expenditure connected to petrol subsidy could reach N5.4 trillion in 2024. Atiku demanded clarification on the actual cost of the subsidy regime and how much the government was saving from its removal.
“Paying subsidies and lying about it is nothing to brag about. Nigerians deserve better than this deception,” Atiku said at the time.
The Presidency rejected the allegation, with then Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, insisting that there was no provision for N5.4 trillion in fuel subsidy payments in the 2024 budget.
“The government wants to restate that its position on fuel subsidy has not changed from what President Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared on 29 May 2023. The fuel subsidy regime has ended. There is no N5.4 trillion being provisioned for it in 2024, as being widely speculated and discussed,” Onanuga said on June 6, 2024.
The subsidy debate resurfaced during the nationwide protests over economic hardship in August 2024.
Tinubu, in a national broadcast, ruled out reversing the policy, describing the decision as painful but necessary to put the Nigerian economy on a stronger footing.
“For decades, our economy has remained anaemic and taken a dip because of many misalignments that have stunted our growth,” he said.
The President added, “I, therefore, took the painful yet necessary decision to remove fuel subsidies and abolish multiple foreign exchange systems which had constituted a noose around the economic jugular of our Nation and impeded our economic development and progress.”
Tinubu had earlier acknowledged the hardship caused by the reform in his June 12, 2023 Democracy Day address, while maintaining that the government had to take difficult decisions to free resources previously consumed by the subsidy system.
“I feel your pain,” he told Nigerians.
“I admit that the decision will impose extra burden on the masses of our people,” the President said, while urging citizens to endure the difficulties as his administration introduced measures intended to cushion the impact of the reforms.