By Eshioromeh Sebastian, James Adamu and Beatrice
The Federal Government’s proposed 30-day petrol discount at Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) stations has triggered a fierce backlash from opposition political parties, presidential candidates and organised labour, who describe the measure as tokenism, electoral gimmickry and a poorly structured intervention that fails to address the structural crisis in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, announced on Thursday that NNPC Retail would forgo its retail profit margin and sell petrol at cost for 30 days, with priority given to public transport operators nationwide.
The government also proposed a N1,350 per litre ceiling on the ex-gantry or landing cost of petrol as part of a price modulation mechanism designed to smooth volatility.
Oyedele insisted the arrangement did not constitute a return to the subsidy regime, describing it as “neither a subsidy nor a price control” but a measure to “smooth prices over time rather than suppressing them”.
The opposition disagrees.
Atiku: ‘Nigerians Are Not Fools’
African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, led the rejection, describing the initiative as a “panic-driven publicity stunt” and “reckless, disgraceful and scandalous.”
In a statement issued by the Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said the measure was a temporary intervention that would not address the hardship caused by high fuel prices.
“Atiku totally rejects this calendar-scheduled, election-laced subsidy package. Nigerians are not fools to be offered a month of discounted fuel after years of punishing prices and then expected to forget the hardship when the discount expires. This is shameless and heartless,” Atiku said.
The former Vice President questioned what would happen after the 30-day period, saying: “What happens on Day 31? Nigerians wake up to the same brutal prices, the same punishing transport fares and the same rising cost of food. The government cannot manufacture relief for one month and expect Nigerians to applaud while the hardship remains.”
Atiku reiterated his proposal for capped and budgeted production support tied to fuel refined in Nigeria, with safeguards to ensure benefits reach consumers. “This volte-face proves that the production-support proposal I have advanced is workable, achievable and not complicated,” he said. “Tinubu made life expensive. I will make life affordable again.”
SDP’s Adebayo: ‘Tinubu’s House of Commotion’
Social Democratic Party (SDP) presidential candidate, Prince Adewole Adebayo, dismissed the Federal Government’s move as uncoordinated and likened it to the popular television series “Fuji House of Commotion” .
“I saw the visual and heard of the policy or statement; I don’t know. There is no plan behind it, so I cannot know whether it is a policy or a gesture, but it immediately reminds me of a series on television in the 90s called ‘Fuji House of Commotion.’ One thing they are presenting is Tinubu’s house of commotion. It does not make any sense in any way,” Adebayo said during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today .
According to him, the 30-day fuel discount window does not have legal backing and structural clarity, which ultimately raises questions about the funding model.
“Besides the NNPC, none of the people seated there belong in that decision. The NNPC is supposed to be a limited liability company with its own independent management. Second, there is no designated account established under the Ministry of Finance to handle petrol discount subsidies. Third, a 30-day window is not a short-term policy—it is a flash in the moment, lacking short-, medium-, or long-term vision. Furthermore, they did not cite a single law authorising what they are doing,” Adebayo said .
He cautioned against artificially trying to slash petrol prices without addressing production costs.
“If you want to lower petrol prices, you do not adjust the retail selling price out of thin air—you adjust the cost of production. It is a tragedy for a country when the person positioned to coordinate our economy reduces his thinking to the level of a petrol station attendant giving out discounts. A fuel attendant’s level of intellect cannot manage monetary and fiscal policy,” he said .
TUC: ‘It Is a Subsidy by Another Name’
Trade Union Congress (TUC) President, Festus Osifo, faulted the framing of the policy, insisting that despite the terminology used, any move to cap the price of fuel constitutes a subsidy.
“You and I know very well that whenever you cap the price of any product – whether that cap will be high or that cap will be low – it is a subsidy in one form or the other,” Osifo said on Channels Television’s Politics Today .
He explained: “When the gantry price is more than ₦1,350—let’s say it’s ₦1,500—and the government is taking off that cost of ₦150, you’re actually subsidising the product, so it’s actually a subsidy” .
The TUC chief said past governments have used “fancy” terms to mask fuel price interventions, and questioned the fiscal sustainability of the arrangement.
NDC: ‘Tokenism and Deceit’
The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) also rejected the measure, describing it as “tokenism and a Greek gift” in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Osa Director.
“This is nothing but tokenism and a Greek gift from a government that whimsically removed fuel subsidy without proper consideration, consultation, or cushions for Nigerians,” the party stated.
The NDC questioned the broader consequences of the subsidy removal, asking: “What happens to the millions of Nigerians who lost their jobs and whose businesses collapsed as a result of the callous and poorly planned removal of subsidy? What about those who lost their lives in poorly equipped government hospitals that have now become mortuaries?”
The party also questioned the practicality of limiting the discounted petrol to designated NNPC retail outlets, warning that the arrangement could create fresh congestion and safety concerns.
Labour Party, Obidient Movement Join Criticism
The Labour Party and the Obidient Movement, the grassroots support base of NDC presidential candidate Peter Obi, also condemned the measure, describing it as an “election year Greek gift” and an attempt to reintroduce subsidy through the backdoor.
The Obidient Movement questioned whether the government’s decision was linked to the 2027 presidential election, asking, “Did subsidy suddenly become good because Peter Obi said he would restore it?”
NLC Issues Two-Week Ultimatum
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) issued a two-week ultimatum to the Federal Government to urgently reduce the price of petrol and commence renegotiation of the national minimum wage.
In a communiqué signed by NLC President Joe Ajaero after a joint meeting of the National Executive Council (NEC) and Central Working Committee (CWC) at Labour House, Abuja, the labour centre said the current wage had been significantly eroded by naira depreciation and rising living costs. The ultimatum commences on Friday, October 9, 2026.
The NLC demanded that petrol prices be reduced to the level that prevailed when the current national minimum wage was signed into law in 2024.
“The exorbitant pump price of petrol has had a cascading effect on the cost of transportation, food, and other essential goods, further deepening the hardship of workers and the masses,” the communiqué stated.
FG Defends Measure
The Federal Government has defended the intervention, with the Presidency stating that the measure had the approval of President Bola Tinubu and was designed to cushion the impact of global crude oil price shocks on vulnerable households.
In a statement by Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the Presidency insisted that “none of these measures restores a blanket subsidy. Doing so would create longer-term harm for a short-term cure” .
Oyedele stressed that returning to the pre-reform petrol price would cost more than N20 trillion annually and could push the naira to nearly N3,000 to the dollar. He said the 30-day discount was a targeted measure to provide immediate relief without reversing the government’s decision to end the subsidy regime.
The minister also announced other measures, including forward sales of crude oil to domestic refineries, increased funding for cash transfers to vulnerable households, and a proposed excess profit tax on operators who take undue advantage of consumers during the period of price volatility .
Market Reality
The political furore unfolds against a backdrop of recent price movements in the downstream sector. Dangote Refinery recently reduced its gantry petrol price by N25 per litre, from N1,350 to N1,325, triggering lower retail pump prices at many filling stations across the country .
Checks in Abuja showed that NNPC outlets and a few others reduced their pump price by N25 per litre to N1,370, down from between N1,420 and N1,450 per litre. MRS filling stations, which previously sold petrol at N1,395 per litre, reduced the price to N1,370 .
Yet pump prices remain well above pre-subsidy-removal levels, and the government’s proposed N1,350 ceiling on ex-gantry cost has itself been criticised as too high.
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