President Bola Tinubu has accused politicians promising to restore petrol subsidy ahead of the 2027 general elections of misleading Nigerians.
This was just as the president insisted that his administration will not reverse the policy.
Tinubu spoke on Tuesday at the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign rally in Dutse, the Jigawa State capital, where he also promised to reduce food prices through increased investment in agriculture if re-elected.
Addressing the crowd, the president said Nigeria had sufficient arable land, human resources and agricultural potential to achieve food sufficiency.
He pledged to expand investment in mechanised farming, irrigation and agricultural research, adding that his administration would establish six mechanised farming service centres across the country’s six geopolitical zones.
“We have the arable land. We have the commitment. We have the people. We can feed ourselves, and we will bring the food prices down to the minimum,” he said.
Tinubu also promised greater involvement of universities in agricultural research and development.
“Our universities will be involved in research and development, more in agriculture than ever before,” he added.
On petrol subsidy, the president dismissed calls for its restoration, describing politicians making such promises as liars.
“To those who said subsidy is coming back, it is a lie. Don’t let them lie to you again. It is not going to come back. We cannot spend the future of our children today,” Tinubu said.
He questioned how the government would finance infrastructure projects and meet other public obligations if subsidy payments were reinstated.
“How will you pay for those commitments, repair the roads and maintain them? How will you function? The labourers, the granite suppliers, and the rock suppliers; they are eating and surviving,” he said.
The president also defended the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) student loan scheme, describing it as an instrument for tackling poverty and pledging to sustain it.
“NELFUND is our weapon against poverty, and we will continue in that direction,” Tinubu added.
Politics Nigeria reports that Tinubu’s remarks came a day after former Vice-President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, reiterated his commitment to restoring petrol subsidy if elected president in 2027.
Atiku restated his position in a post on X on Monday, alongside a campaign video explaining his proposed approach to petrol subsidy.
“My position stands! I will restore subsidy to make life easier and more affordable for Nigerians,” the former vice-president wrote.
In the video, a female narrator said petrol was selling for more than N1,300 per litre in Nigeria, contrasting the price with cheaper fuel reportedly enjoyed by citizens of other crude oil-producing countries, including Libya, Iran, Venezuela, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
The narrator explained that Atiku’s proposed subsidy arrangement would apply only to petrol produced by local refineries rather than imported products.
The video also quoted the former vice-president as saying: “My position has not changed and will not change. I will restore it.”
It further explained that the proposed intervention would support domestic refining until the industry could operate without government assistance.