Atiku lectured me on subsidy removal, now he wants to restore it — Oshiomhole

Senator Adams Oshiomhole has criticised former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s plan to restore fuel subsidy if elected president in 2027, questioning what he described as a reversal of Atiku’s previous position on the policy.

Oshiomhole, a former president of the Nigeria Labour Congress and former governor of Edo State, made the remarks during an interview with TVC on Tuesday, September 29, while reacting to Atiku’s campaign promise. The senator recalled that while he was NLC president and Atiku served as vice-president, the former vice-president had argued in favour of removing petroleum subsidy.

“Atiku Abubakar himself, in his quiet moment, will laugh at himself. Don’t forget, I was the president of the NLC, and as vice president, Atiku lectured me about the waste of petroleum subsidy and why it is necessary to remove it, except that I disagree with them,” Oshiomhole said. He also questioned Atiku’s consistency on the issue, pointing to the former vice-president’s position during the 2023 election campaign that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation should be privatised.

“Remember, Atiku is on record, just in 2023, as saying that he will privatise NNPC. You don’t have that tape? He even added that even if they kill him. I don’t know why he needs to die because he wants to privatise NNPC,” he said. Oshiomhole further questioned how a government could privatise the national oil company while continuing to determine the price at which petroleum products were sold by its new owners. “So can you privatise something in private hands, and yet dictate to the new owner how to sell the product that he produces?” he asked.

Atiku has said he would restore fuel subsidy as part of his economic agenda if elected president in 2027, arguing that the policy could help reduce the cost of living and make petroleum products more affordable. Oshiomhole, however, maintained that Atiku’s previous position on subsidy removal and his proposal to privatise the NNPC raised questions about his latest campaign pledge.