A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress, Dino Melaye, has said former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s plan to restore petrol subsidy could reduce the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly known as petrol, to between N400 and N500 per litre.

Melaye, a former senator representing Kogi West, stated this on Monday while appearing on the Democracy Today programme of African Independent Television.

Atiku, who is the ADC presidential candidate for the 2027 election, had in August pledged to restore petrol subsidy if elected president. He had also accused the administration of President Bola Tinubu of failing to account for funds saved from the removal of the subsidy.

Tinubu, however, rejected the proposal, describing it as evidence of what he called “serious ignorance of governance and economy.” The President also argued that subsidy removal had freed more resources for state governments, noting that some states previously struggled to pay salaries and pensions.

But Melaye said the ADC's objective was to make Nigeria more affordable by returning subsidy on petrol.

According to him, reducing the price of petrol from its current level could have a ripple effect across the economy because transportation and the movement of goods and services are closely linked to fuel prices.

“Atiku is saying he will take these things from the few people and give them back to the people. By so doing, the possible concomitant effect is that there will be a reduction in the price of petroleum products,” Melaye said.

“Once there is a reduction in price from N1,400, you will start buying fuel at N500 or N400; definitely it’s going to have resultant effects on every other price of goods and commodities.”

The former lawmaker argued that the removal of subsidy had contributed to the rising cost of living, stressing that Nigerians across political divides were affected by the prevailing petrol price.

He said transportation costs, the movement of goods and commodities and aviation were all affected by fuel prices, describing petrol as an important link connecting different sectors of the economy.

Melaye also argued that corruption, rather than subsidy itself, was responsible for the loss of public funds associated with the scheme.

“Ab initio, there is no subsidy. What you have is corruption, money being stolen. So, we are replacing corruption now by leveraging the people. What few corrupt individuals are taking away, we are taking it back to the people,” he said.

The ADC chieftain further questioned the volume of borrowing under the Tinubu administration despite the removal of petrol subsidy. He claimed that the Buhari administration borrowed N87 trillion during its eight years in office, while the Tinubu administration had borrowed N157 trillion in three years.

Melaye questioned why the government would continue borrowing despite the additional revenue expected from the removal of subsidy.

Atiku's proposal to restore petrol subsidy has remained a subject of debate, with supporters arguing that it could reduce the cost of living, while the Tinubu administration has maintained that subsidy removal has increased funds available to governments and helped address longstanding fiscal pressures.