Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, has insisted that his position on subsidy has not changed, adding that he will restore it.

Speaking on Tuesday when he received the Osun State leadership of the ADC in Abuja, Atiku disowned comments made by one of his media aides, Paul Ibe, during an interview on AIT, stating that he was not speaking on his authority.

“Earlier, one of my press aides contradicted me in a policy statement as far as subsidy is concerned.

“I want to repeat categorically that when I said I would return to subsidy, I will! Nigeria is rich enough to look after the welfare of its citizens. Let it be clearly stated that he was not speaking on my own authority,” Atiku said.

Ibe had earlier in his interview said his principal would restore petrol subsidy if elected president in 2027, but would gradually phase out the intervention after the economy recovers.

But Atiku, in a statement posted on his X, countered, saying, “On the question of subsidy, my position has not changed and will not change: I will restore it! A nation as blessed as ours has no business abandoning its citizens to hardship. Nigeria is rich enough to look after her own.

“I believe the wealth of a nation is not measured by how much government collects, but by how much the money in the pockets of its people can buy.

“I want wages to have value again. I want farmers to move produce without transport swallowing their profits. I want families to fill their baskets without emptying their pockets. I want businesses to produce, employ and prosper.

“That is why I will restore targeted subsidy and put purchasing power back in the hands of Nigerians.

“When fuel rises, transport rises. When transport rises, food rises. When food rises, families suffer. I will break that wretched chain that has defined our national life in the nearly four years of Tinubu’s presidency.

“I will support Nigerian production, reduce energy costs and restore purchasing power. I will not restore the import racket; I will restore relief.

“I restated this commitment when I received the Osun State leadership of the ADC in Abuja on Tuesday. I will make the naira in your pocket worth more, make daily living affordable again, and secure our people. That is the Nigeria I intend to build.”

Atiku also drew a clear line between his proposed petroleum intervention and Nigeria’s former fuel import subsidy regime, saying any support under his administration would be targeted at domestic production and tied to measurable performance.

In a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, the former vice president’s camp said Atiku had not proposed bringing back the old system under which government subsidised imported petrol, but rather a capped and transparent intervention designed to support local refining, increase supply and ultimately bring down energy costs.

“For the avoidance of doubt, policy belongs to the candidate, not the spokesperson.

“Our responsibility as communicators is to explain Atiku’s position accurately, not create formulations capable of confusing Nigerians or handing opponents convenient talking points,” Shaibu said.

According to him, Atiku’s proposal would involve a “targeted, capped, transparently budgeted and independently audited subsidy,” for domestic refining and production.

The intervention, he added, would not operate according to an arbitrary withdrawal date.

Instead, it would be phased out as domestic refining capacity expands, fuel supply becomes more stable, and competition improves.

“There is no arbitrary withdrawal date. As domestic refining expands, supply stabilises, competition deepens, and the market becomes capable of delivering affordable prices without government support, the intervention progressively becomes unnecessary,” he added.

He likened the proposed arrangement to temporary scaffolding used during construction.

“You do not remove scaffolding because the calendar says so. You remove it when the building can stand securely on its own,” he said.

The clarification comes as the fuel subsidy debate has returned to the centre of the 2027 presidential contest.

President Bola Tinubu abolished the petrol subsidy at his inauguration on May 29, 2023, a decision that triggered a sharp increase in petrol prices and fed into a broader cost-of-living crisis.

The reform, alongside the liberalisation of the foreign exchange market, has also been defended by the Federal Government as necessary to strengthen public finances and attract investment.

The subsidy question has nevertheless remained politically sensitive because of its direct impact on transport, food prices, household expenses and the operating costs of businesses.

Atiku reignited the debate last week when he said he would bring back the petroleum subsidy if elected, arguing that Nigerians had not benefited sufficiently from the savings associated with its removal.

His latest clarification seeks to redefine that position as a production-support mechanism rather than a return to the old import-driven arrangement.

The ADC presidential candidate said any intervention would be subject to controls intended to prevent the leakages associated with the former subsidy regime.

Rather than focusing on when government support would end, Shaibu said the emphasis should be on whether the intervention achieves its intended economic objectives.

“The real question is simple: Why has everything become so expensive, and what will Atiku do to make life affordable again?” he asked.

He accused the Tinubu administration of transferring the burden of its economic reforms to households and businesses, arguing that an Atiku government would instead focus on reducing production and transportation costs, strengthening domestic refining and rebuilding purchasing power.

“Tinubu transferred the shock of his reforms to Nigerian families.

“Atiku will reduce production and transportation costs, strengthen domestic refining, and restore purchasing power.

“The choice is not removal of subsidy versus restoration of subsidy. It is Expensive Nigeria versus Affordable Nigeria,” Shaibu said.

Ibe, speaking on AIT, also said the proposed subsidy would differ from the former regime, as government support would be tied to crude oil production and domestic refining.

He said the policy would provide temporary relief to Nigerians and businesses, stimulate economic activity and improve productivity.

“What he’s simply saying is that the subsidy that he is advocating will be tied to the barrel, the crude oil barrel. This is perhaps the only thing that we have in so much abundance that Nigerians have not yet benefited from,” Ibe said.

According to him, crude oil would be supplied to local refiners at a discounted price, enabling them to produce petrol and diesel at lower costs, which would translate into reduced pump prices for consumers.

“The crude oil will be sold at a discounted price, subsidised to refiners, and that will enable refiners to be able to produce fuel and diesel at a cheap cost. And when they produce cheaply, they will sell at the real pump price,” he said.

Ibe said an independent committee would determine the appropriate price of crude oil supplied to refiners, taking prevailing market conditions into account.

He added that despite the deregulation of the downstream petroleum sector, government could monitor prices to ensure refiners and marketers operated within the framework of the policy.

“There’ll be a window because, of course, we deregulated. You may not fix the price, but you can have price monitoring to ensure that everybody aligns with what government hopes to achieve,” he said.

Ibe said the intervention would be temporary and aimed at reviving economic activity and increasing productivity.

“It is not something that is… It is for a time, and it is essentially to ensure that we jumpstart this economy,” he said.

The former vice-president’s spokesman also criticised the administration of President Tinubu for removing petrol subsidy alongside other major economic reforms without allowing the economy sufficient time to adjust.

“No surgeon, no doctor would carry out two or more serious major surgeries, one after the other. They would do one, allow the patient to recuperate, and then undertake the second, or the third.

“But what has this administration done? The issue of subsidy, flippant. No cabinet. No advisers. Just in the heat of the moment, it has been removed. No shock absorbers. Nothing. No palliatives. Absolutely nothing,” Ibe said.

He argued that the simultaneous removal of petrol subsidy, deregulation of the foreign exchange market and electricity subsidy had worsened the economic hardship faced by Nigerians.