2027 Election: Drama as Tinubu Told to Resign, Reason Emerges
- Atiku Abubakar has challenged President Bola Tinubu to either withdraw from the 2027 presidential race or prepare to lose at the polls
- Atiku demanded a public apology from Tinubu after the presidency dismissed his production-linked fuel subsidy proposal as economic ignorance
- The former vice president cited an IPMAN call for domestic refinery support as vindication of his energy affordability plan
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Atiku Abubakar, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, has issued a direct challenge to President Bola Tinubu, telling him to step aside ahead of the 2027 election or brace for defeat at the polls.
Atiku also called on the president to personally apologise to him and to Nigerians for mocking his production-linked fuel subsidy proposal. The former vice president made this known through a statement issued by his senior special assistant on public communication, Phrank Shaibu.
Source: Twitter
IPMAN's call fuels Atiku's response
The statement was prompted by a recent intervention from the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), which urged the federal government to extend financial support to domestic refiners as a way of bringing petrol prices down.
The Sun reported that Atiku argued that the marketers' position confirmed what he had been saying all along, adding that the call was especially meaningful because it came from industry insiders who live with the consequences of expensive fuel every day.
His proposal, which he plans to implement if elected in 2027, centres on targeted government support for local petroleum production rather than restoring the import-linked subsidy that Tinubu scrapped in 2023. The Presidency had described his idea as proof of economic ignorance, insisting that returning to any form of subsidy would be a step backwards.
Atiku pushed back firmly, drawing a clear distinction between his plan and the old regime. He said his approach would reinforce key goals of the Petroleum Industry Act, specifically around promoting local refining and making petroleum products accessible to ordinary Nigerians at a fair price.
Atiku: The human cost of petrol prices
Atiku argued that the standard by which fuel policy should be measured is not how much a litre costs in dollar terms, but how long a Nigerian worker must labour to afford it. Citing the DailyFuels Fuel Affordability Index, he noted that Nigeria ranked 91st globally, with the average Nigerian needing roughly 44 minutes of work to purchase a single litre of petrol. A full 40-litre tank, by that measure, represents about 29.5 hours of labour.
He said Tinubu's framing of subsidy removal as a defining economic achievement had grown increasingly disconnected from the daily hardship facing Nigerian households and businesses.
Atiku also extended an invitation to IPMAN, urging the marketers to move past public commentary and actively participate in designing a transparent support framework for domestic refining. He was clear, however, that this was not about helping the current administration fix its own policy failures, but about laying the groundwork for a new energy direction from 2027.
Atiku dismisses age concerns
Legit.ng earlier reported that Atiku Abubakar addressed questions about his age in a BBC Hausa interview published on Friday, pushing back against critics who raised concerns.
The ADC presidential candidate challenged the interviewer's premise by asking whether he appeared old enough to warrant the question.
Atiku also responded to claims that he had become a stumbling block to opposition coalition efforts ahead of the 2027 election.
Proofreading by James Ojo, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
