Wike defends subsidy removal, slams Atiku over u-turn on policy

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The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has defended the Federal Government’s removal of fuel subsidy, accusing former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of inconsistency over his position on the policy.

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Wike criticised Atiku on Thursday in Abuja while inspecting ongoing infrastructure projects in the FCT, recalling that the former VP had pledged to remove fuel subsidy within his first 100 days in office if elected in 2023, but was now promising to restore it.

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According to a statement issued and signed by the minister’s Senior Special Assistant, Lere Olayinka, Wike questioned Atiku’s rationale for seeking to reverse a policy he had previously supported.

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“Now, in 2026, he is not going to remove the fuel subsidy. Is he going back to the fraud, which he had alleged that fuel subsidy was?” Wike asked.

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Describing Atiku as a “voodoo economist,” Wike accused him of changing his positions to appeal to voters.

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“Atiku, who is confused, who acts like a voodoo economist, Atiku will say anything just to be president,” Wike said.

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He argued that presidential aspirants should demonstrate consistency in their policies rather than adjust their positions to suit political circumstances.

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“Leadership is not you coming out, you say one thing now in the morning, in the afternoon you say a different thing, in the night you are talking of a different thing. That is not it,” he said.

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Wike also questioned how Atiku intended to reintroduce fuel subsidy given the transformation of Nigeria’s petroleum industry following the enactment of the Petroleum Industry Act and the commercialisation of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

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“He (Atiku) is living in the past. If not, he will know that with the Petroleum Industry Act, NNPC is now fully commercialised. It has transformed the old NNPC into a limited liability company, and no longer the sole importer or producer of fuel,” Woke said.

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The minister asked, “Will Atiku, as President (Which he will never be), pay subsidy on fuel produced by Dangote Refinery?

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“It also shows that he is confused, having insisted in the past that he will remove subsidy, which he described as a fraud.
nDoes it now mean that he will restore what he said was a fraud”?n

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The minister argued that restoring subsidy would contradict the direction of the Petroleum Industry Act, which was designed to make the midstream and downstream petroleum sector commercially driven and competitive.

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“Reintroducing government-controlled fuel prices would reverse this policy direction, create regulatory uncertainty and weaken investor confidence in the sector.

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“It will also recreate the distortions Nigeria has spent years trying to eliminate. Experience has shown that fuel subsidies encourage smuggling, arbitrage, inefficiency and opaque fiscal practices, while reducing revenues available to the Federation Account. Rather than benefiting only Nigerians, artificially low domestic prices often subsidise fuel consumption beyond Nigeria’s borders,” Woke said.

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He urged Atiku to explain how he would deploy the savings generated from subsidy removal if he believed the policy should be maintained.

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“All I thought he would have argued, ‘Yes, I still believe in the removal of fuel subsidy, and I think that the savings made would have been utilised in this way or that way,’” Wike said.

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Defending President Bola Tinubu’s subsidy removal policy, Wike said the savings had resulted in increased allocations to the three tiers of government.

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He said the FG had explained how the additional funds were distributed, challenging state and local governments to account for how they had utilised the increased allocations.

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According to the minister, the policy had also improved the ability of governments to meet salary and pension obligations.

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“Nobody talks about non-payment of pension; nobody talks about non-payment of salary. Before, for you to pay salary, you would beg and beg the banks to give you money. But all those things are things of the past,” he said.

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Wike also dismissed the suggestion that Atiku was one of the leading opposition contenders ahead of the 2027 presidential election, insisting that Tinubu remained the dominant candidate.

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“I disagree with you that Atiku is one of the leading candidates. You have only one leading candidate, and that’s Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu,” Woke insisted.

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He argued that the opposition was not sufficiently united to defeat the ruling All Progressives Congress, adding that the opposition was stronger in 2023 than it was currently.

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“That’s why I say that 2027 is gone. It’s gone because you don’t have an opposition that wants to wrestle power from the government,” he said.

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The FCT minister also rejected claims of an increase in armed robbery incidents in Abuja, saying available security reports did not support the assertion.

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He acknowledged isolated incidents of crime but said security agencies were responding to them.

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“I disagree with you that there are more armed robbery cases,” he said.

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Urging the media and public to exercise caution in reporting security developments.

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Wike said the Department of State Services had tracked an individual allegedly impersonating security personnel and using fake materials to harass residents.

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“I’m not saying there are no one or two incidents of crime, but to say the armed robbery has increased in Abuja, I don’t agree,” Wike said.

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Speaking on the infrastructure projects inspected during the visit, Wike expressed satisfaction with the progress of work, saying several major projects were expected to be completed before the end of the year.

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He described one of the projects as a major intervention capable of transforming the city and commended the contractors for the progress recorded.

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The minister also said construction around the Mpape bypass and Garki axis had helped reclaim land previously affected by a gully.

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“We are satisfied with what we have seen. We’re very impressed that the promises made to our people are being fulfilled. Again, it’s what the whole agenda is all about,” he said.

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Wike also declined to take responsibility for complaints that some Area Council chairmen were not doing enough to develop their councils.

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He said the chairmen were elected by residents of their respective councils and were therefore accountable to them.

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“They are the people who elected them. They should ask them. I am not there; I did not appoint them; they were elected,” Wike said.

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He, however, acknowledged that some councils might have areas where their performance could be improved, noting that he had previously served as a council chairman: “I was one-time a council chairman”.

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Adding that it would be unfair to conclude that the Area Council administrations were doing nothing.

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