The African Democratic Congress has blamed the Federal Government’s economic policies for Uber’s exit from Nigeria and accused the Bola Tinubu administration of creating an increasingly difficult environment for businesses.
ADC National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi said the departure of the ride-hailing company and the closure or downsizing of other multinational operations represented, in the party’s view, a loss of confidence in the economy.
The opposition party described Nigeria as becoming a “graveyard of businesses,” a political characterisation that reflects the ADC’s assessment rather than an independently established economic conclusion.
The ADC argued that high energy costs, exchange-rate depreciation, inflation and weaker consumer demand had made it harder for companies to operate profitably.
It criticized the government for highlighting modest GDP improvements while many households and businesses remained under financial pressure.
The party also cited poverty and manufacturing-sector figures to support its argument that the economic recovery claimed by government had not translated into broad relief.
Some of the figures and company examples cited by the ADC would require independent verification before being treated as definitive measures of the administration’s economic performance.
The party listed a number of multinational and retail companies that had either exited, restructured or reduced their Nigerian operations.
The circumstances surrounding each company’s decision differ, and not all exits can necessarily be attributed to the same policy factors.
The ADC used Uber’s withdrawal to renew its support for targeted intervention in fuel pricing and domestic refining.
It argued that transport and energy costs had become central pressures on both households and businesses.
The Federal Government has defended its economic reforms as necessary to correct long-standing fiscal and foreign-exchange distortions and says improving macroeconomic indicators show that the economy is stabilising.
The competing claims are likely to remain central to the 2027 election debate as opposition parties attempt to frame the cost of living and corporate exits as evidence against the administration’s reform program.
