The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has launched a fierce critique against the Tinubu administration, condemning its recent policies as “cruel” and “insensitive” and accusing the government of deceiving Nigerians with false revenue claims.
In a statement on Thursday, the opposition party targeted the new 5 per cent tax on petrol and the 300 per cent increase in passport fees, arguing they punish citizens already struggling with economic hardship.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, questioned the government’s narrative on revenue generation, citing a “N21.22 trillion shortfall” between the 2025 budget projection and actual collections. “These figures simply do not add up,” Abdullahi stated, challenging the government’s celebratory tone.
The ADC also disputed President Tinubu’s account of the naira’s performance, calling a claim that the exchange rate improved from N1,900 to a dollar “patently false.”
The party saved its strongest language for the new levies. It described the petrol tax as “cruel and deeply insensitive at a time when the majority of Nigerians are still reeling from the effects of fuel subsidy removal.”
Regarding the passport fee increase, the ADC provided a stark comparison: “In the United Kingdom, a passport costs just 5 per cent of the minimum monthly wage. In Nigeria, it now costs 143 per cent of the minimum wage.”
The party concluded that the government’s approach amounted to “taxing the very survival of the people, monetizing hardship, and celebrating suffering as success.”
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