Senator Adams Oshiomhole has criticised former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s proposal to restore fuel subsidy if elected president in 2027, questioning what he described as a change in Atiku’s position on the policy.
Oshiomhole, a former president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and former governor of Edo State, made the remarks during an interview with TVC on Tuesday, September 29, while responding to Atiku’s campaign promise.
The senator recalled that during his tenure as NLC president, when Atiku was vice-president, the former vice-president had argued in favour of removing petroleum subsidies.
“Atiku Abubakar himself, in his quiet moment, will laugh at himself. Don’t forget, I was the president of the NLC, and as vice-president, Atiku lectured me about the waste of petroleum subsidy and why it is necessary to remove it, except that I disagree with them,” Oshiomhole said.
He also questioned Atiku’s consistency on the issue, referring to the former vice-president’s position during the 2023 presidential campaign that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) should be privatised.
“Remember, Atiku is on record, just in 2023, as saying that he will privatise NNPC. You don’t have that tape? He even added that even if they kill him. I don’t know why he needs to die because he wants to privatise NNPC,” Oshiomhole said.
The senator further questioned how the national oil company could be privatised while the government continued to control the price at which petroleum products were sold by its new private owners.
“So can you privatise something in private hands, and yet dictate to the new owner how to sell the product that he produces?” he asked.
