Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu of using the Federal Government’s proposed 90-day cost-of-living relief plan to attract voters ahead of the next presidential election.
Atiku, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, made the allegation through his Director of Strategic Communication at the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Phrank Shaibu, who addressed a press conference on his behalf.
Shaibu questioned the timing of the initiative, arguing that its 90-day duration would extend beyond the election, which he said was 86 days away.
“The arithmetic is plain: the plan ends after Nigerians have voted,” Shaibu said, adding that families should not be asked to wait for relief after enduring years of economic hardship.
He described the initiative as “election bait” and argued that the government should be judged by the economic conditions Nigerians had experienced since Tinubu assumed office.
According to Atiku, the plan identifies five priority areas: food affordability, tax harmonisation, completion of key projects, removal of investment bottlenecks and household support.
He argued that the administration should have addressed these issues earlier, particularly given the impact of petrol subsidy removal on transportation, food prices and production costs.
“Tinubu cannot erase three and a half years of hardship with a 90-day announcement,” he said.
Atiku also questioned the effectiveness of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited’s (NNPC) petrol discount promotion, which began on October 1 and was subsequently presented as part of the government’s relief efforts.
He claimed that he visited NNPC Retail stations and was told that no discount was available, adding that he bought petrol at ₦1,405 per litre.
He called on the company to publish details of the promotion, including the number of customers who received discounts, the stations involved and the volume of petrol sold at reduced prices.
Atiku also questioned the reach of the initiative, noting that NNPC operated about 900 retail stations while motorists bought fuel from thousands of outlets across the country.
He asked the government to explain how the proposed food-affordability measures would reduce costs for farmers, transporters and traders, and when consumers could expect to see lower prices in markets.
On tax harmonisation, he demanded details of the charges to be removed or consolidated and urged the government to publish the full tax schedule.
He also questioned which projects would be completed within 90 days, how much funding remained outstanding and when Nigerians would be able to use the facilities.
“A project is complete when it serves people, not when it is marked complete on a government dashboard,” he said.
Atiku further called for details of the investment bottlenecks the government intended to remove, arguing that manufacturers needed reliable electricity, manageable transport costs and access to affordable finance to expand and create jobs.
He also sought clarification on the proposed household support programme, including eligibility requirements, the amount each household would receive, the commencement date, the budget and the payment process.
The former vice-president raised concerns about a registration form reportedly circulating under the name “Arise for Tinubu 2027”. He alleged that it requested voter identification, bank details and telephone numbers, and questioned who was collecting the information and how it would be used.
“No Nigerian should have to hand over voter or bank details to a political group to receive public relief,” he said.
Atiku called on the government to clarify whether the registration exercise was connected to any publicly funded programme and explain how it would prevent household support from being used for political mobilisation or the collection of personal data.
He said Nigerians who had borne the burden of economic reforms deserved evidence that promised relief would reach them and remain effective beyond the election.
Atiku pledged that his proposed approach would focus on disciplined public spending, targeted household relief, lower production and transportation costs, and policies to help manufacturers expand and employ more people.
He challenged Tinubu to demonstrate whether Nigerians were better off than they were in May 2023 and whether the proposed relief would still make a difference after the 90-day period.
The allegations and criticisms were made by Atiku’s campaign team. The supplied material does not include a response from the Presidency or NNPC to the claims.
