ADC Slams Tinubu’s Subsidy Policy,Advocates for Targeted Relief

ABUJA — The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has formally distanced itself from the All Progressives Congress (APC) government’s approach to fuel subsidy, describing the universal removal of the support system as a “war on the poor.”

​Speaking on Wednesday, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC’s National Publicity Secretary and former Minister of Sports, argued that the problem with Nigeria’s oil sector was never the existence of a subsidy itself, but rather the systemic “rot and mismanagement” that defined its implementation over the decades.

​“Corruption is the Problem, Not the Tool”

​Abdullahi maintained that subsidies are legitimate economic instruments used by governments worldwide to stabilize essential costs. He contended that by removing the subsidy entirely, the President Bola Tinubu-led administration opted for a “lazy” solution that ignores the core issue of criminality within the supply chain.

​”The problem is clear,” Abdullahi stated during the interview. “Subsidy has acquired a negative connotation in Nigeria, but there is nothing inherently wrong with it. It is the corruption associated with it that is the problem. Removing subsidy for everyone is just as detrimental as giving it to everyone indiscriminately.”

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​The Burden of the Poor

​The ADC spokesman was particularly critical of the timing and execution of the 2023 policy, which saw petrol prices jump from approximately ₦255 per litre to nearly ₦1,500 in some regions today—a surge of almost 500%. He highlighted that this astronomical rise has occurred without a robust social safety net, effectively “punishing the poor for the crimes committed by the rich.”

​”It is fundamentally unjust for a low-income earner to pay the same price for fuel as a wealthy individual with a fleet of vehicles,” Abdullahi noted. He cited data suggesting that Nigeria’s poverty rate has climbed to 63% following these reforms, with millions of households now unable to afford basic energy and food.

​The ADC Alternative: Targeted Subsidies

​In a bid to present a viable alternative, the ADC is advocating for a targeted subsidy regime. This model would focus on lowering energy costs specifically for those in need through:

• ​Sector-specific incentives: Lowering costs for public transportation and agriculture.
• ​Direct Palliatives: Implementing verifiable social protection programs rather than general pump price deregulation.
• ​Alternative Metrics: Shifting national success markers from abstract GDP growth to tangible improvements in citizens’ living standards and job creation.

​”ADC will pursue economic policies that protect the people,” Abdullahi concluded. “We will not measure progress by GDP alone, but by how many people we are able to lift out of poverty.”

​As the administration continues to defend its reforms as necessary for long-term stability, the ADC’s “people-first” narrative appears to be gaining traction among a populace grappling with the highest inflation rates in a generation.