The Federal Government has warned that any attempt to restore petrol subsidy could reverse Nigeria's economic gains, weaken investor confidence and worsen pressure on public finances.
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, gave the warning in an opinion article published on Monday, August 24, 2026, titled "Restoring Fuel Subsidy Will Reverse Nigeria's Economic Gains."
Idris argued that returning to the subsidy regime would recreate the fiscal pressures, fuel scarcity and market distortions that made the policy unsustainable before its removal by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's administration.
"Restoring subsidy would almost instantly return Nigeria to the economic conditions of 2022, recreating the same fiscal pressures, distortions, scarcity and incentives for arbitrage that made the old system unsustainable," he said.
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The minister said Nigerians must consider what government would have to sacrifice to finance a renewed petrol subsidy, including funding for education, healthcare, infrastructure, security and social protection.
He recalled that Nigeria spent about $10bn on petrol subsidies in 2022 amid declining oil production and weak government revenues.
Citing the Federal Government's Nigeria's Reform Scorecard, Idris said subsidy savings released ₦15.8tn to the Federation between June 2023 and December 2025.
Of the amount, ₦5.43tn accrued to the Federal Government, ₦6.52tn to states and ₦3.88tn to local governments.
He said the additional fiscal space had enabled governments to meet salary and pension obligations while increasing investments in infrastructure, security, agriculture and human capital development.
According to Idris, about ₦6.47tn was additionally spent on strategic infrastructure, while more than ₦400bn was committed to major social investment initiatives, including NELFUND, MREIF and CREDICORP.
He added that social transfers had reached more than 10 million Nigerian households.
The minister, however, noted that government was still spending heavily on electricity subsidies, estimated at ₦3.14tn between June 2023 and December 2025.
"Nigeria cannot build tomorrow's economy by returning to yesterday's unsustainable subsidy regime. We have moved beyond that model," Idris said.
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