Mohammed Idris, minister of information and national orientation, has warned that restoring petrol subsidy could reverse the economic gains recorded since its removal.
Idris was reacting to a proposal by Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), to restore the subsidy if elected president in 2027.
“If elected, I will bring back the oil subsidy, and whoever stole the money must refund it,” Atiku said during an interview in Hausa.
In a statement issued on Monday by Rabiu Ibrahim, his special assistant on media, Idris urged Nigerians to consider the opportunity cost of returning to the subsidy regime.
He questioned whether the country could afford to prioritise petrol subsidy over programmes such as student loans and consumer credit for young Nigerians.
The minister also asked whether Nigeria could sustain higher allocations to states and local governments while restoring the subsidy.
He said a return to the policy could reduce funding for roads, railways, electricity and security, while limiting investments in healthcare, education and social protection.
Idris recalled that Nigeria spent about $10 billion on petrol subsidies in 2022, when oil production and government revenues were declining.
He said the World Bank had previously warned that subsidy spending was consuming resources that could otherwise have been directed towards education, healthcare, infrastructure and social protection.
Taiwo Oyedele, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, said subsidy savings mobilised N15.8 trillion in resources for the federation between June 2023 and December 2025.
Oyedele said the amount comprised N5.43 trillion for the federal government, N6.52 trillion for states and N3.88 trillion for local governments.
Idris, clarified that the N15.8 trillion did not represent a separate pool of cash, but resources made available within the federation’s wider fiscal system.
According to him, the additional fiscal space has strengthened the ability of states and local governments to meet salary and pension obligations and fund essential services.
The minister said the reform scorecard showed that about N6.47 trillion had been spent additionally on strategic infrastructure, while more than N400 billion had been committed to social investment programmes.
The initiatives include the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), MOFI Real Estate Investment Fund (MREIF) and CREDICORP.
In July, the National Orientation Agency (NOA) said gains from the removal of petrol subsidy had been reinvested in social welfare programmes, including the student loan scheme.
Idris maintained that reversing the subsidy reform would place fresh pressure on public finances and undermine the fiscal space created since its removal.
Ojo Triumph
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