ABUJA: Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, has said he would restore fuel subsidy if elected President of Nigeria in the 2027 election.
Sowore made the declaration during an interview on Arise TV on Tuesday while outlining his proposed alternative to the economic policies of the current administration.
Asked directly whether he would bring back petrol subsidy if elected, Sowore responded, Absolutely.
The AAC candidate argued that despite the Federal Government’s announcement that petrol subsidy had been removed, government was still subsidising different areas of the economy.
According to him, the government has merely changed the name and structure of some subsidies rather than eliminating them.
In the first place, they are still paying subsidy. They just changed the name of whatever they call it, Sowore said.
He argued that the government was not only subsidising petrol but was also supporting the naira through what he described as quiet and secret subsidies.
They are subsidizing not only petrol—because they don’t have enough and can’t produce locally, but they are also subsidizing the Naira. That’s one thing they will never tell you, he said.
Sowore also linked the exchange rate of the naira to what he described as hidden government intervention.
The reason the Naira is at a certain, you know, rate to a dollar, is because it’s being quietly and secretly subsidized, he said.
While acknowledging that governments around the world sometimes support their currencies, the activist-turned-politician questioned what he described as the Federal Government’s lack of transparency about subsidy policies.
Yes, but why are you lying about subsidy then?” he asked.
Sowore argued that the problem with subsidies was not necessarily the policy itself but how government resources were distributed.
He claimed that wealthy Nigerians and businesses benefited more from government concessions than ordinary citizens, pointing to customs waivers granted to importers.
In fact, the people that get the most subsidy in Nigeria is not the poor, it’s the rich,” Sowore said.
He contrasted such concessions with the benefits previously received by ordinary Nigerians through subsidised petrol prices.
Sowore further blamed the removal of petrol subsidy for worsening economic conditions, particularly the decline in the value of the naira.
And you saw what happened immediately you remove subsidy. Look at where your economy tanked. Your Naira also went down the toilet,” he said.
He said that if elected, his administration would seek to abandon what he described as an “old mentality” that had allowed poverty to become entrenched in Nigeria.
According to Sowore, his government would focus on changing the economic structure rather than relying on what he described as cosmetic reforms and statistics.
“So, there’s no need for us to sit down here and ask, ‘Oh, what would you do differently?’ Of course, what we have to do differently first and foremost is to get rid of this old mentality and the ideas that brought poverty to become a standard, you know, household name in Nigeria, he said.
The AAC candidate also criticised the government’s use of the term “multidimensional poverty when discussing Nigeria’s economic challenges.
He raised concerns about food insecurity, arguing that Nigeria’s status as a major oil-producing country should make widespread food shortages unacceptable.
Sowore cited the Food and Agriculture Organization, claiming that Nigeria was among countries facing significant food insecurity concerns in 2026.
He argued that the situation demonstrated the depth of the country’s economic challenges despite its oil resources.
According to him, government communication has focused excessively on presenting economic reforms positively instead of addressing the realities confronting ordinary Nigerians.
President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of Nigeria’s longstanding petrol subsidy on May 29, 2023, during his inauguration speech.
Tinubu famously declared that “subsidy is gone,” arguing that the cost of maintaining the subsidy had become unsustainable.
The Federal Government said the money saved from the policy would be redirected towards infrastructure, education, healthcare and job creation.
The announcement triggered an immediate increase in petrol prices, with the cost of transportation and other essential goods also rising sharply.
Sowore’s pledge to restore the subsidy therefore represents a major departure from the economic direction of the Tinubu administration.
With the 2027 presidential election approaching, the issue of petrol pricing, the naira, inflation and the cost of living is expected to remain a major part of the political debate.
Sowore’s promise to restore fuel subsidy is likely to appeal to Nigerians struggling with high living costs, but it also raises fresh questions about how such a policy would be funded and managed if he wins the presidency.
