Vice President Kashim Shettima has criticized former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s proposal to introduce production-based petrol subsidies, questioning how the plan would be funded and its impact on the national budget.
Shettima spoke on Wednesday at the inauguration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council in Abuja, where he mocked Atiku’s shift in economic positions ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He said Atiku, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), had long identified with capitalism but was now advocating a policy associated with greater government intervention in the economy.
“A change of ideological wardrobe cannot balance a national budget,” Shettima said, asking who would pay for the proposed subsidy, who would benefit and which other government priorities might lose funding.
Atiku has maintained that he would introduce a targeted, capped and transparently audited production subsidy to support domestic refining and petrol production if elected in 2027. He argues that the proposal differs from the former subsidy regime, which supported imported fuel.
The exchange comes amid renewed debate over fuel prices following the Federal Government’s introduction of a 30-day petrol discount at NNPC Retail stations. Finance Minister Taiwo Oyedele said the discount was being funded by reduced retail profit margins and did not amount to a return of government-funded fuel subsidies.
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