Former Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi has likened former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s proposal on fuel subsidy to the All Progressives Congress (APC)’s decision to field a Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket in the 2023 election.
Fayemi, who also served as Minister of Solid Minerals Development, made the comparison during an interview on Arise Television’s Prime Time on Monday while discussing the ongoing debate over fuel subsidy removal and Atiku’s position.
“My take on that is that Atiku’s proposal of subsidy is politically equivalent to our own Muslim-Muslim ticket in 2023. It’s a political strategy. It’s not an economic construct,” Fayemi said.
He acknowledged that the proposal could resonate with Nigerians struggling with the economic consequences of fuel subsidy removal.
“But understandably, it’s a political strategy that will sell with those who are hard done by the impact of fuel subsidy removal,” he added.
Fayemi reiterated his long-standing support for the removal of fuel subsidy, saying he had advocated the policy for years, including during his four-year tenure as chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum.
“I was and I remain an advocate of fuel subsidy removal. As chairman of the governors’ forum, I spent four years in this battle,” he said.
According to Fayemi, President Bola Tinubu inherited significant groundwork on subsidy removal from the previous administration, although he criticised the manner in which the policy was implemented.
“What President Tinubu inherited, in fairness to him, was the work that had already been completed by that administration. The only challenge I had with it was the way it was done,” he said.
Fayemi recalled that state governors had previously worked with the Federal Government and the World Bank to develop a safety-net strategy aimed at cushioning the impact of subsidy removal on vulnerable Nigerians.
He argued that the continued hardship facing many Nigerians was what Atiku was seeking to leverage politically with his subsidy proposal.
“I believe that’s what Vice President Atiku is taking advantage of. The vulnerable segment of the population is still hard done by,” Fayemi said.
He noted that many Nigerians were less concerned about the technical arguments surrounding subsidy policy and more focused on their ability to meet basic needs, including feeding their families, paying school fees and dealing with healthcare challenges.
“They just want to live reasonably well, eke out a living, have one or two meals a day, be able to send their kids to school, not be taken in by sickness or anything that might create further problems for them,” he said.
Fayemi also linked poverty and inequality to Nigeria’s security challenges, saying they were “also at the root of the insurgency and the banditry that we’re dealing with.”
He maintained that Atiku’s proposal should be seen largely as an electoral strategy designed to appeal to Nigerians dissatisfied with the effects of fuel subsidy removal ahead of the 2027 presidential election, drawing a parallel with the APC’s Muslim-Muslim ticket in 2023.
