The African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has outlined his approach to reducing the cost of fuel and easing the wider financial pressures facing Nigerian households and businesses.
Atiku said his proposed approach would focus on supporting domestic fuel production rather than using public funds to subsidise imported petrol.
“I am not restoring subsidy so that Nigeria can keep paying for imported petrol,” Atiku said. “I am restoring subsidy so that Nigerians can produce more at home, pay less for fuel, and keep more money in their pockets.”
He described the approach as the difference between an import subsidy and a production subsidy.
According to him, an import subsidy makes products brought into the country cheaper by using public funds to reduce their cost, while a production subsidy is designed to support local producers by lowering the cost of producing goods domestically.
He illustrated the distinction using the example of footwear production in Aba. Rather than spending public resources to make imported shoes cheaper, he said government could support local shoemakers to reduce their production costs, increase output, create employment and make their products more affordable.
“I choose the Aba shoemaker,” he said.
