The African Democratic Congress (ADC) says President Bola Tinubu may announce the implementation of the fuel tax law during his next inauguration if re-elected for a second term.
A statement on Tuesday by Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC national publicity secretary, said the tax, if implemented, could push the price of petrol above N1,500 per litre nationwide.
The party was reacting to a recent remark by Taiwo Oyedele, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, that the federal government would introduce the fuel tax when the economy stabilises and income levels improve enough for Nigerians to accommodate it.
Oyedele spoke during an interview with Rotus Odiri, Arise TV business correspondent, on the sidelines of the 2026 International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank annual meetings in Bangkok, Thailand.
Although Oyedele did not give a specific date for the implementation of the fuel tax, he said revenue from the proposed levy would be dedicated to road infrastructure and the development of a fuel reserve “to help moderate prices of fuel products if anything happens”.
‘ANOTHER BURDEN TO NIGERIANS’
However, Abdullahi claimed that the government’s real plan was to activate the tax law once Tinubu is re-elected.
“They have already enacted the law for a 5% tax on fuel under the Nigeria Tax Act,” the statement reads.
“And President Tinubu has signed it into law since June 2025. If they are not activated it yet, it’s because of re-election. Once Tinubu is re-elected, he will announce the new tax law on the inauguration ground, just as he did for fuel subsidy in 2023.”
He warned that at a petrol price of N1,450 per litre, a five per cent surcharge passed directly to consumers would raise the price to N1,522.50, with potentially devastating consequences for transportation, food distribution, small businesses and household expenditure.
“This Tinubu-led APC never runs out of new ways to make survival more expensive,” he said.
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