Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticised President Bola Tinubu’s proposed 30-day fuel discount at Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) retail stations, describing the initiative as a publicity stunt that offers only temporary relief from the rising cost of living.
Atiku said the proposed discount could not address the economic hardship Nigerians had endured over the high cost of petrol, transportation and food, accusing the administration of introducing a short-term measure instead of pursuing sustainable solutions.
The former vice president’s position was contained in a statement issued on Thursday, October 8, 2026, by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) Presidential Campaign Council.
He described the initiative as a desperate attempt to provide temporary relief after years of economic hardship, arguing that Nigerians should not be expected to accept a month-long discount as a solution to persistent financial difficulties.
In the statement, Atiku said the administration’s decision to introduce the measure was particularly troubling because of the prolonged hardship experienced by households and businesses.
“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,” he said.
He argued that the intervention amounted to a temporary response to an economic crisis that required lasting policy solutions.
According to him, “The proposed 30-day discount is not an economic plan but a political bandage on a wound this government helped create.”
Atiku questioned what would happen after the expiration of the discount, warning that Nigerians could return to paying the same high prices for petrol while transportation fares and food costs remained elevated.
“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,” he said.
“The government cannot manufacture relief for one month and expect Nigerians to applaud while the hardship remains,” he added.
The former vice president also raised concerns about the scope of the initiative, noting that the discount was limited to NNPC retail stations.
He said the government had yet to disclose the amount motorists would save per litre or explain how the intervention would benefit commuters who depend on commercial transportation.
Atiku questioned whether transport operators would pass any savings from the discount to passengers through reduced fares, arguing that the absence of clear guarantees raised concerns about the initiative’s overall impact.
He further maintained that the administration’s decision to introduce the intervention contradicted its previous position on the possibility of providing meaningful relief from high fuel prices.
“This volte-face proves that the production-support proposal I have advanced is workable, achievable and not complicated,” he said.
Atiku accused the government and its supporters of previously dismissing his proposal, despite what he described as the growing need for measures to cushion the impact of fuel costs on Nigerians.
“The Tinubu government and its spin doctors have tried to make it sound impossible, yet they are now reaching for a temporary subsidy-style intervention because the pain has become impossible to ignore,” he said.
He reiterated his call for a capped and budgeted production-support framework tied to petroleum products refined in Nigeria, with safeguards to ensure that the benefits reached consumers and supported local refining.
According to Atiku, such a framework would offer a more sustainable approach to reducing fuel costs than a time-limited discount.
“Nigerians need lasting relief, not a countdown to the return of hardship. Tinubu’s government cannot spend years telling Nigerians to endure, then offer 30 days of relief and call it a solution,” he said.
The former vice president maintained that economic policies should focus on improving living conditions and ensuring that households and businesses could afford essential goods and services.
He reiterated his commitment to pursuing policies aimed at reducing the cost of living, concluding with a direct criticism of the administration’s economic record.
“Tinubu made life expensive. I will make life affordable again,” Atiku declared.