Presidential candidate of the Accord Party, Dr Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, has launched a fresh attack on former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over his recent reversal on fuel subsidy removal, describing him as the “father of subsidy removal” in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic and demanding an apology to Nigerians.
Hashim said Atiku’s decision to now promise to restore fuel subsidy if elected president in 2027 cannot be separated from his previous support for the policy, insisting that Nigerians deserve an explanation for the dramatic change in position.
According to Hashim, changing one’s mind is not the problem, but refusing to acknowledge or explain a previous position is.
“Some candidates who campaigned in the last election to remove subsidy are now reversing themselves without even regretting their earlier display of ignorance and lack of compassion for the people,” Hashim said.
He specifically accused Atiku of abandoning his earlier position without taking responsibility for it.
“Atiku’s recant on subsidy removal without an apology is dishonesty. If you change your position because circumstances or evidence have changed, tell Nigerians why you changed. There is nothing wrong with changing your mind. What is wrong is pretending that you never held the position in the first place,” he said.
Hashim further argued that Atiku’s position on subsidy removal did not begin with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.
“The truth of the matter is that Atiku, before Tinubu, on the national political scene, has been the father of the idea of subsidy removal and wholesale privatization in this republic, he and his so-called economic team,” he said.
“We combatted them vigorously during the early period of the Obasanjo government.”
Hashim recalled that in 1999, during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Atiku served as vice president and headed the government’s economic team.
He said the administration increased petroleum product prices and removed subsidy at the time, a decision he claimed was publicly opposed by him and other PDP officials.
According to Hashim, Alhaji Iro Dan Musa, then PDP Deputy National Chairman; Harry Marshall, National Vice Chairman, South-South; Abubakar Magaji, National Vice Chairman, North-Central; Emmanuel Ibeshi, National Publicity Secretary; and himself, then Deputy National Publicity Secretary, jointly addressed a press conference condemning the increase in petroleum prices and subsidy removal.
He added that the National Assembly also passed resolutions against the policy, after which the executive reversed its decision.
“We opposed subsidy removal when it was politically inconvenient to do so. We did not suddenly discover the suffering of Nigerians because another election is approaching,” Hashim said.
He maintained that his historical opposition to subsidy removal demonstrated that his position was not merely an electoral strategy.
Hashim also rejected the blanket argument that subsidies are inherently wasteful, saying government intervention could be used strategically to protect Nigerians and productive sectors from severe economic shocks.
He advocated a targeted subsidy regime covering petroleum products and other strategically important goods where necessary.
“Our position is simple: restore subsidy on petroleum products and other strategic products where necessary, but do it intelligently. Subsidy should be targeted at protecting the Nigerian economy and Nigerian people, not at enriching intermediaries,” he said.
According to him, any future subsidy programme must be transparent, targeted and subject to strict accountability.
He proposed that government should identify strategic products and sectors where price increases could have economy-wide consequences, establish clear eligibility requirements, publish the fiscal cost and beneficiaries, and periodically assess whether the intervention is producing measurable economic benefits.
Hashim also stressed that domestic production must remain central to any sustainable subsidy policy.
“The objective would be to use subsidy as a bridge to greater domestic productive capacity, not as a permanent excuse for dependence on imports,” he said.
The Accord presidential candidate also accused sections of the media of failing to adequately scrutinise politicians who change their positions or allegedly appropriate ideas previously advanced by less powerful political actors.
“They lack originality and their fans in the media never take them to task,” Hashim said.
“Instead, they promote these corrupt and dishonest politicians as major candidates.”
He warned that Nigerians should pay closer attention to the records of presidential aspirants ahead of the 2027 election rather than judging candidates solely by their media visibility.
Hashim said the election should be about competing ideas, credible economic programmes and accountability.
“Nigeria needs originality, courage and compassion in leadership. We cannot continue recycling people because they have the biggest megaphone. We must begin to ask who said what first, who stood by the people when it was difficult, and who has a credible plan to rebuild the economy,” he said.
The controversy follows Atiku’s recent declaration that he would restore fuel subsidy if elected president in 2027.
During a Hausa-language interview, Atiku questioned what had happened to the money saved following subsidy removal, arguing that Nigerians had not seen tangible improvements in healthcare, education and security.
“I did not oppose the removal of the oil subsidy, but where is the money? Where did it go? It was intended to reduce poverty and help children attend school. Where is the money now? It seems they are just stealing it,” Atiku said.
He subsequently pledged to restore the subsidy if elected and recover funds allegedly misappropriated.
Atiku’s latest position contrasts sharply with his stance ahead of the 2023 presidential election, when he strongly supported subsidy removal and described the policy as unsustainable, corruption-prone and a drain on public finances.
The reversal has now triggered a fresh political confrontation over one of Nigeria’s most controversial economic policies, with Hashim insisting that Atiku must explain why he changed his position and acknowledge his earlier advocacy.
Hashim reaffirmed his commitment to an economic programme focused on affordable energy, increased domestic production, industrialisation, job creation, stronger purchasing power and strategic government intervention in critical sectors.
“The Nigerian people are not laboratory animals for politicians to experiment on and then return to them during election season with a new script. We must learn from our mistakes, tell the truth about them and build a better economic future,” he said.