The All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council (APC-PCC) has challenged former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to provide details of his proposed “production subsidy” for locally refined petrol, including its legal basis, cost and mechanism for guaranteeing lower pump prices.
Atiku had reiterated the proposal at a press conference in Abuja on Friday, September 18, 2026, and called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to reduce the prices of petrol and diesel.
But the APC-PCC, in a statement on Saturday, September 19, 2026, questioned how the proposed subsidy would operate within the framework of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, particularly its provisions on petroleum product pricing.
The council cited Section 205(1) of the PIA, which provides that unrestricted free-market conditions shall determine the wholesale and retail prices of petroleum products.
It also referred to a statement 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.
According to the NMDPRA, “No such market failure has been declared.”
The APC-PCC consequently asked Atiku to clarify whether refineries that receive his proposed subsidy would be required to sell petrol at a prescribed price.
It said if the answer was yes, Atiku should identify the legal framework that would permit the government to impose such a condition and explain how it would operate consistently with the PIA.
“If the answer is no, he should explain how public support to refiners would guarantee lower prices at filling stations,” the council said, arguing that without an enforceable mechanism, refiners could receive the benefit while consumers continued to pay market prices.
The council also demanded details of the financial implications of the proposal and how it would be funded.
It said Atiku had previously suggested that the intervention could involve supplying domestic refineries with crude at preferential prices.
According to the APC-PCC, any discount on crude supplied to domestic refineries could reduce the value accruing to the Federation and consequently affect revenues available to the federal, state and local governments.
The council estimated, based on publicly reported refinery throughput and domestic petrol-supply figures, that the proposed subsidy could cost between N17 trillion and N21 trillion annually, depending on the size of the discount, the volume covered and whether the intervention applied to the entire crude barrel or only petrol sold domestically.
It stressed that the assumptions underlying such estimates would need to be clearly defined.
The APC-PCC asked Atiku to disclose the proposed subsidy rate, annual spending ceiling, volume of crude or petrol to be covered, source of funding, mechanism for guaranteeing lower pump prices and safeguards against diversion, smuggling and fraudulent claims.
It also asked whether amendments to the PIA would be required to implement the proposal.
The council said an appropriation by the National Assembly could authorise expenditure but would not, by itself, resolve all regulatory issues arising under the PIA.
“If Atiku intends to amend the law, he should say so plainly,” it said.
The APC-PCC also challenged Atiku to reconcile his current proposal with his previous position on downstream petroleum deregulation.
It recalled that in November 2022, at the Lagos Business School, Atiku described the petrol subsidy system as fraudulent and pledged to complete its removal.
The council said Atiku had reminded his audience that he chaired the committee that removed the first and second phases of the subsidy and had promised to complete the process.
It also cited an August 25, 2026 post by Atiku on X in which he stated, “I will restore it!”
The APC-PCC asked him to explain why he was now advocating the restoration of subsidy in another form and how the proposed arrangement would avoid what it described as the abuse, scarcity, smuggling and fiscal losses associated with the former subsidy regime.
The council further noted that downstream deregulation began during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, when Atiku was Vice President.
According to the statement, diesel was deregulated in June 2003, while aviation fuel also moved to market pricing during the same administration. Kerosene was deregulated by the Muhammadu Buhari administration in 2016.
It said petrol remained the major product under the old subsidy regime, which was scheduled to end in June 2023 under the PIA.
The APC-PCC noted that the reform process that eventually produced the PIA began in 2000, during the first term of the administration in which Atiku served as Vice President.
It therefore asked him to explain how his proposed production subsidy aligns with the legal and regulatory framework developed through that reform process.
Tinubu Administration Pushes CNG, Electric Transport
The APC-PCC contrasted Atiku’s proposal with the Tinubu administration’s focus on compressed natural gas (CNG) and electric mass transit as alternatives for reducing transportation costs.
It said more than 120,000 vehicles had been converted to CNG, while additional vehicles had been converted privately.
The council said commuters in seven states and the Federal Capital Territory were already paying between 31 per cent and 83 per cent less on routes served by CNG and electric buses.
It cited Borno State, where government-operated services charge between N50 and N100 on routes where commercial operators charge between N300 and N600.
It also said passengers on the Suleja-Abuja route in Niger State pay N550 instead of about N800.
In Kaduna, the statement said, free CNG buses carried more than 1.4 million passengers in five months of 2025, saving residents an estimated N1.39 billion in fares.
The APC-PCC added that alternative-energy transport in Adamawa State had reduced fares by as much as 50 per cent, while Abia State had deployed 40 electric buses and 20 charging stations.
It quoted President Tinubu as recalling an agreement reached with the 36 state governors on August 27 that “from October 1, more Nigerians should begin to see measurable reductions in transportation costs.”
The council also defended the administration’s commitment to a deregulated downstream petroleum market, saying the policy had supported increased investment in domestic refining.
It cited the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, which it said had reached its nameplate capacity of 650,000 barrels per day and reportedly achieved 700,000 barrels per day during performance tests.
It also noted the refinery’s reported plan to raise N2.1 trillion through an initial public offering for expansion.
The APC-PCC acknowledged the pressure caused by higher petrol prices on Nigerian households but said the Tinubu administration would continue implementing measures to support citizens.
It said petrol had sold for about N830 per litre before the Middle East crisis pushed crude oil prices above $100 per barrel, adding that a de-escalation of the crisis could reduce crude oil prices and, consequently, petrol and diesel prices globally.
The council said the NMDPRA was working with the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission on price-gouging and with the Nigeria Customs Service to tackle the diversion of petroleum products across Nigeria’s borders.
It urged Atiku to publish a detailed policy document and obtain an independent legal and fiscal analysis of his proposal.
“Every proposed intervention in the downstream sector must be lawful, transparent, properly costed and capable of delivering measurable benefits to consumers,” the council said.
It described Atiku’s production-subsidy proposal as an “uncosted promise” whose legal and operational framework had yet to be clearly identified.
The statement ended with a further criticism of the former vice president, urging him to read the PIA and accusing him of being out of touch with current developments in the oil sector.
