The Obidient Movement has said a government led by Peter Obi will restore fuel subsidy but operate it under a transparent and verifiable framework that will enable Nigerians to pay half the independently determined reference price of petrol.
The movement, in a statement signed by its Media and Communications Directorate, Onyeka Dike, said the proposed policy would eliminate the secrecy, alleged corruption and opaque accounting that characterised previous subsidy regimes.
It also criticised the Federal Government’s recently announced 30-day petrol discount, describing the policy as contradictory to the administration’s longstanding position that subsidy removal was necessary.
According to the movement, the latest government intervention has raised questions about the figures being used to determine petrol consumption and the financial implications of the relief measures.
It recalled that President Bola Tinubu said in September 2024 that petrol consumption had dropped to around 30-something million litres daily following subsidy removal.
However, the movement noted that the Minister of Finance, Taiwo Oyedele, put daily petrol consumption at approximately 50 million litres in October 2026 while explaining the government’s proposed relief measures.
‘How did Nigeria move from thirty something million litres to 50 million litres? Where is the independently verifiable data supporting this figure?’ it asked.
The group urged the Federal Government to publish the data and methodology used to determine daily petrol consumption, arguing that inflated or unverifiable figures could create opportunities for the abuse of public funds.
It said every litre used in calculating government interventions must be independently verified, stressing that Nigerians should know how much is being spent, the basis for the expenditure, the beneficiaries and the actual quantity of petrol delivered to consumers.
The movement also accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration of continuing subsidy payments under different names despite its declaration that the petrol subsidy had been removed.
‘When Tinubu announced that fuel subsidy was gone, all he did was to change the name,’ it alleged, citing ‘under-recovery’ and ‘energy security costs’ as examples.
The movement further criticised the APC’s historical opposition to fuel subsidy removal, recalling that the proposed petrol price after subsidy removal in 2012 was about ?145 per litre.
It alleged that APC members, including Tinubu, opposed the policy at the time, but that successive APC administrations had subsequently overseen repeated increases in petrol prices.
On what it described as the ‘Half Price Policy,’ the movement said the reference price for petrol would be determined and published weekly by an independent panel based on international benchmarks, freight costs and verified local costs.
It said subsidy payments would be linked directly to actual and verified sales, with refiners, depot operators and marketers unable to claim reimbursement for petrol that had not been sold to consumers through metered filling-station pumps.
According to the movement, digital tracking would provide an auditable trail from the refinery gate to filling stations, while inflated claims and fictitious consumption would not qualify for payment.
It also said the proposed subsidy would be available to every licensed Nigerian refinery, with access to domestic crude for local refining governed by transparent and equitable rules. The movement said the proposed system would also require public disclosure of government expenditure.
It said the funding framework would be presented to the National Assembly for approval, while monthly reports would disclose the reference price, litres sold, subsidy payments, beneficiaries, breaches, penalties, recovered funds and independent audit findings.
‘Public money will not be concealed in NNPC accounts under unexplained labels such as under recovery,’ it said.
The group further proposed audits of energy security contracts and measures to reduce crude production costs, tackle corruption and inflated security contracts, strengthen pipeline protection through partnerships with host communities, and guarantee fair crude access to licensed domestic refineries.
It said the measures would require an appropriate legislative framework and were intended to create a sustainable subsidy system rather than a temporary intervention that would expire after 30 days.
The Obidient Movement also questioned the Federal Government’s decision to introduce a temporary petrol discount after maintaining that subsidy had been eliminated.
‘The APC government claims that subsidy is gone, yet it has now introduced a temporary discount and a mechanism under which refiners and importers may recover shortfalls later,’ it said.
The movement maintained that Nigerians should not have to choose between affordable petrol and accountable governance.
It said Obi’s proposed policy would make fuel subsidy a measurable public intervention aimed at reducing the burden of petrol prices while protecting public funds from fraud and abuse.
‘Every litre must be verified. Every payment must be justified. Every naira must be accounted for,’ the statement said.
The movement said the proposed approach would form part of what it described as a New Nigeria in which public resources would be managed transparently and directed towards improving the welfare of citizens.