June 6, (THEWILL)- The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general elections, Atiku Abubakar, has accused the Bola Tinubu administration of diverting public funds through petrol subsidy, hence the refusal of the government to reveal how much is being spent on subsidy.
Atiku stated this in a statement on Thursday, in response to the claim by The Presidency that the Bola Tinubu administration has put an end to the fuel subsidy regime.
THEWILL earlier reported that Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, in a statement on Thursday, had said the position of President Tinubu on fuel subsidy removal has not changed from what he declared on May 29, 2023.
The Presidential aide quoted the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, as saying the fuel subsidy regime has ended, and no N5.4 trillion has been set aside for it in the 2024 budget as being widely “speculated and discussed”.
However, making a swift response in a statement signed on Thursday, by Paul Ibe, his Media Adviser, Atiku said the refusal of the Federal Government to disclose how much is being spent on subsidy was because the Tinubu administration is diverting public funds through petrol subsidy.
The former Vice President said the clandestine subsidy regime was one of the reasons investments in the oil sector had refused to come in.
He said, “Tinubu has brought the shady nature of running Lagos to the federal level. He claims subsidy is gone but his Special Adviser on Energy, Olu Verheijen, says they are intervening from time to time while his Finance Minister, Wale Edun, described subsidy removal as an ‘ongoing process’. A document authored by the Coordinating Minister of the Economy revealing how much subsidy is being paid is now being disowned by the very authors of the document.
“Both the World Bank and the IMF have revealed in separate reports that Nigeria is still paying petrol subsidies, but the Tinubu government refuses to come clean. Even a senior member of the APC had revealed that subsidy was being paid.
“For a man who claims to be on a mission to attract foreign direct investment, it is ironic that he cannot see that his policy flip-flops and lies are capable of dissuading investors. He must come clean on this subsidy issue since he doubles as petroleum minister. The Tinubu administration should be courageous enough to own their policies and outcomes with their full chest and responsible enough to be accountable for their actions to Nigerians.
“This denial lends credence that money meant for the Federation Account, which ought to be shared to states and local governments, is being diverted without any form of accountability whatsoever.”
Atiku urged the National Assembly to get to the bottom of the matter rather than focusing on frivolous issues.
“The National Assembly needs to be alive to its responsibilities, especially in the area of oversight. Posterity will not be kind to members of the National Assembly if they continue to look the other way while daylight robbery is taking place,” he said.
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