The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has warned that bringing back petrol subsidy could undermine Nigeria’s fiscal improvements and reverse gains recorded under President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms.
Idris said restoring the subsidy would also risk weakening investor confidence and recreating some of the financial pressures that made the previous system difficult to sustain.
The minister made the comments in an opinion article published in national newspapers on Monday, titled “Restoring Fuel Subsidy Will Reverse Nigeria’s Economic Gains.”
According to Idris, any discussion about returning the subsidy must take into account the resources that would have to be diverted from other sectors of the economy.
He questioned whether Nigeria could afford to choose subsidised petrol over funding student loans, infrastructure, healthcare, education, security and increased allocations to state and local governments.
Subsidy removal freed N15.8 trillion, minister says
Idris recalled that Nigeria spent about $10 billion on fuel subsidies in 2022, at a time when oil production and government revenues were under pressure.
He said the World Bank had previously warned that the subsidy consumed funds that could otherwise have been invested in critical sectors, including healthcare, education, infrastructure and social protection.
The minister cited the Federal Government’s “Nigeria’s Reform Scorecard: The Benefits, Costs and Harms Prevented”, saying the document showed significant fiscal benefits from the removal of the petrol subsidy.
According to Idris, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, reported that subsidy savings generated N15.8 trillion in resources for the Federation between June 2023 and December 2025.
He explained that the figure comprised about N5.43 trillion for the Federal Government, N6.52 trillion for states and N3.88 trillion for local governments.
Idris clarified that the N15.8 trillion was not a separate cash reserve but represented resources released into the wider Federation fiscal system following the removal of the subsidy.
He said the additional fiscal space had helped states and local governments meet salary and pension obligations while supporting spending on essential services.
Government highlights infrastructure and social spending
The minister said the reform savings had also supported federal investments in infrastructure, security, agriculture and human capital development.
He cited the Reform Scorecard as recording approximately N6.47 trillion in additional spending on strategic infrastructure.
More than N400 billion, he added, had been committed to major social investment initiatives, including the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), MOFI Real Estate Investment Fund, MREIF and CREDICORP.
Idris further said social transfers had reached more than 10 million Nigerian households.
The minister warned that restoring petrol subsidy would place additional pressure on public finances, especially as the government was already carrying a substantial electricity subsidy.
He estimated electricity subsidy payments at N3.14 trillion between June 2023 and December 2025.
‘Nigeria cannot return to old subsidy regime’
Idris said the government had already made difficult economic choices and should not reverse them without carefully considering their long-term consequences.
He argued that returning to the former subsidy model could recreate fiscal pressures, market distortions, fuel scarcity and opportunities for arbitrage.
The minister also noted that the organised private sector and other economic stakeholders had expressed concerns about reversing the subsidy reform.
“Nigeria cannot build tomorrow’s economy by returning to yesterday’s unsustainable subsidy regime. We have moved beyond that model,” he said.
Idris urged Nigerians to assess the reforms from the perspective of long-term economic stability rather than short-term relief.
He maintained that the objective should be to use available public resources to build a more productive economy capable of supporting infrastructure, social services and sustainable growth.
