Ogun State chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party and Convener of The Alternative Movement, Otunba Segun Showunmi, has rejected former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s proposal to restore petrol subsidy, describing the plan as an attempt to take Nigeria “back to Egypt.”
Showunmi, who spoke in Abeokuta on Saturday during a sensitisation and mobilisation programme in support of President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid, argued that Nigeria had experimented with fuel subsidy for decades without achieving the intended economic benefits.
His comments came amid the renewed political debate over petrol subsidy ahead of the 2027 presidential election, after Atiku, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, said he would restore a form of petrol subsidy if elected.
Atiku has argued that Nigerians should benefit more directly from the country’s oil resources and that the removal of the subsidy under the Tinubu administration has contributed to worsening living costs.
But Showunmi said returning to subsidy would amount to reversing the country’s policy direction.
“We have tried subsidies in this country. We started it in 1973. And between 1973 and date, we have seen the result. If it had worked, wouldn’t we have seen it?” he asked.
He added, “We have seen that nothing has worked. They couldn’t even repair a refinery for so many years. And one private sector person has run a refinery.
“And some person who is just overtly, inordinately ambitious is saying that he wants to return Nigeria back to Egypt. No! We have left Egypt.”
Atiku has, however, clarified that his proposal is not a return to the former import-subsidy arrangement. His camp has described the proposed intervention as targeted, capped and transparently budgeted support for domestic production and refining, with the intention of reducing energy costs and improving purchasing power.
The subsidy debate has remained a major issue in the 2027 campaign. Atiku initially stated that he would restore petrol subsidy if elected, before further explanations from his camp indicated that the proposed intervention would focus on domestic refining rather than the former import-subsidy regime.
Defending the Tinubu administration’s economic reforms, Showunmi said he had consistently supported the direction of the government’s economic policies.
“If you have been following me, and I know you have, for the past one year, I have been screaming and shouting that the economic direction, the policy ideas, and the things that President Bola Tinubu is doing, is the right direction for the country,” he said.
He claimed that the removal of the petrol subsidy had strengthened revenues available to the three tiers of government.
“Now you have gotten to the point where there’s money in the local government, there’s money in the state, there’s money in the federal,” he added.
The Federal Government has similarly defended the subsidy removal as a measure designed to improve public finances and redirect resources, while critics have continued to point to the immediate rise in petrol, transport and living costs following the policy.
Showunmi also argued that Nigeria needed continuity in governance to enable successive administrations to implement long-term policies.
“We cannot be changing leadership every four years. Democracy is very difficult, and the ability to be able to even run policy requires a bit of time,” he said.
His position formed part of his broader argument for continuity under Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
The Ogun PDP chieftain also dismissed the prospects of southern politicians seeking to challenge Tinubu in the presidential contest, urging Yoruba voters to support the President.
“You will never see the moon and the star come out when the sun is out. Anybody, especially from Yoruba nation, who is calling himself anything, when the sun is out, is wasting his time,” Showunmi said.
“Anyone who says he is going to be running up and down television, deceiving himself, wasting the little resources he has, claiming that he can win presidency here, he is a joker. This election is Bola Tinubu’s election to win.”
Showunmi further appealed to voters in the South-West to mobilise support for Tinubu, warning against a situation where the President records stronger support in northern regions than in his South-West base.
“I have come home to beg the Yoruba people that you will not be ashamed. Because when the election is over, and the people of North-East, North-West and North-Central produce more votes than you, then where will you put your face?
“Therefore, it is time to work now. We are back to 2003,” he said.
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