Wike Slams Atiku Over Fuel Subsidy U-turn

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has criticised former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over his position on fuel subsidy, accusing him of changing his stance on the policy for political reasons.

Wike spoke on Thursday in Abuja while inspecting ongoing infrastructure projects in the Federal Capital Territory.

The minister recalled that Atiku had stated in 2022 that he would remove fuel subsidy within his first 100 days in office if elected president. He questioned why the former vice president was now supporting the return of the subsidy.

Wike said Atiku had previously described fuel subsidy as fraudulent but was now proposing a policy that would bring it back.

He accused the former vice president of lacking consistency and said politicians seeking the presidency should maintain clear positions on major economic policies.

The FCT minister also questioned how a future government would operate a fuel subsidy regime under the current structure of Nigeria’s petroleum industry.

He noted that the Petroleum Industry Act transformed the former Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation into NNPC Limited and moved the sector towards commercial operations.

Wike also raised the issue of fuel produced by the Dangote Refinery, asking whether a government led by Atiku would pay subsidy on locally refined petrol.

According to him, restoring fuel subsidy would conflict with the direction established by the Petroleum Industry Act, which seeks to promote competition and market-based operations in the petroleum sector.

He argued that government-controlled fuel prices could bring back problems associated with subsidies, including fuel smuggling, arbitrage, inefficiency and unclear government spending.

Rather than proposing the return of subsidy, Wike said Atiku should explain how he would use the funds saved through its removal if he still supported the policy.

The minister defended President Bola Tinubu’s decision to remove fuel subsidy, saying the policy had increased the funds available to the federal, state and local governments.

Wike said the additional revenue had helped governments meet salary and pension obligations, adding that delays in the payment of workers’ salaries had reduced considerably.

He also challenged state and local governments to explain how they had used the additional funds received following the subsidy removal.

On the 2027 presidential election, Wike rejected suggestions that Atiku was among the leading opposition contenders.

He maintained that Tinubu remained the strongest candidate and argued that the opposition parties were not sufficiently united to challenge the ruling All Progressives Congress.

According to Wike, the opposition was in a stronger position in 2023 than it is currently, making him confident that the APC would retain power in 2027.

The minister also dismissed claims that armed robbery had increased in Abuja. He said security reports available to the authorities did not support such claims, although he acknowledged that isolated criminal incidents still occurred.

Wike said security agencies were responding to reported cases and disclosed that the Department of State Services had tracked a person allegedly impersonating security officials and using fake materials to harass residents.

On the infrastructure projects inspected during the visit, Wike said he was satisfied with the progress of work and expressed confidence that several major projects would be completed before the end of the year.

He said projects around the Mpape bypass and Garki axis had helped address areas previously affected by erosion and gully formation.

The minister praised the contractors for their work and said the projects were part of efforts to improve infrastructure and transform the Federal Capital Territory.

Wike also declined to take responsibility for complaints about the performance of some Area Council chairmen, saying the officials were elected by residents of their respective councils.

He advised residents to hold their elected council chairmen accountable for the development of their areas.