The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has accused former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of inconsistency over his position on fuel subsidy, alleging that the former presidential candidate was attempting to reverse a policy he had previously supported.
Wike spoke on Thursday in Abuja while inspecting ongoing infrastructure projects in the FCT.
The minister recalled that Atiku had pledged in 2022 to remove fuel subsidy within his first 100 days in office if elected president, but was now advocating its restoration.
“Now, in 2026, he is not going to remove the fuel subsidy. Is he going back to the fraud, which he had alleged that fuel subsidy was?” Wike asked.
He described Atiku as a “voodoo economist,” accusing him of changing his position to suit political circumstances and appeal to voters.
“Atiku, who is confused, who acts like a voodoo economist, Atiku will say anything just to be president,” Wike said.
The FCT minister said anyone seeking the presidency should demonstrate consistency in policy positions rather than changing them according to prevailing political considerations.
“Leadership is not you coming out, you say one thing now in the morning, in the afternoon you say a different thing, in the night you are talking of a different thing. That is not it,” he said.
Wike also questioned how a future administration would restore fuel subsidy under the current structure of Nigeria’s petroleum industry, particularly following the commercialisation of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and the emergence of the Dangote Refinery.
According to him, the Petroleum Industry Act transformed the former Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation into NNPC Limited and ended its position as the country’s sole fuel importer and producer.
“He is living in the past. If not, he will know that with the Petroleum Industry Act, NNPC is now fully commercialised. It has transformed the old NNPC into a limited liability company (NNPC Limited), and no longer the sole importer or producer of fuel,” Wike said.
He further asked whether Atiku, if elected president, would pay subsidy on petroleum products produced by private refiners such as the Dangote Refinery.
“Will Atiku, as President, pay subsidy on fuel produced by Dangote Refinery?” he asked.
Wike argued that restoring subsidy would run contrary to the policy direction established by the Petroleum Industry Act, which seeks to create a commercially driven and competitive petroleum sector based on market principles.
He warned that reintroducing government-controlled fuel prices could create regulatory uncertainty, undermine investor confidence and recreate distortions associated with the former subsidy regime.
According to him, fuel subsidies have historically encouraged smuggling, arbitrage and inefficiency while reducing revenues available to the Federation Account.
Wike challenged Atiku to explain how he would utilise the savings generated by subsidy removal if he believed the policy should continue.
“All I thought he would have argued, ‘Yes, I still believe in the removal of fuel subsidy, and I think that the savings made would have been utilised in this way or that way,’” he said.
The minister defended President Bola Tinubu’s decision to remove fuel subsidy, saying the policy had increased allocations to the different tiers of government.
He said the federal government had explained how the additional funds were distributed and challenged state and local governments to account for how they deployed the increased revenue.
