Abia State Governor Alex Otti has defended the removal of petrol subsidy, saying government resources should be directed towards boosting production rather than subsidising fuel consumption.
Gatekeepers News reports that Otti made the remarks during an interview with Arise TV, where he reiterated his longstanding opposition to subsidising petrol consumption. He said he had previously advocated for the removal of the subsidy, including during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 when global oil demand had fallen sharply.
The governor argued that subsidising consumption could encourage waste and create opportunities for abuse, while consumers tend to be more conscious of their usage when they bear the actual cost.
“When you subsidise consumption rather than production, you are just subsidising laziness. You are subsidising, sometimes, corruption,” Otti said.
He maintained that the decision to remove the petrol subsidy was correct despite the economic difficulties Nigerians experienced following the policy.
“You know, as election approaches, people will be making all sorts of arguments. But removing the subsidy was the right thing to be done,” he said.
Otti also criticised calls for the return of the subsidy, saying such a move would not serve the country’s interest.
“If you are pushing for a subsidy to return, you don’t mean well for the country,” he said.
He said businesses that use petrol for production would benefit more from reliable electricity than from subsidised fuel. According to him, providing stable power would allow manufacturers to operate efficiently and pay for the energy they consume.
“For the people who use it for production, for their factories, those people, they really don’t need the subsidy. They just need constant power supply. And once you’re able to guarantee them constant power supply, they’ll pay,” Otti said.
The Governor’s comments come amid renewed debate over the future of petrol subsidy ahead of the 2027 elections. Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who is seeking the presidency on the African Democratic Congress platform, said in August that he would restore the subsidy if elected. Atiku has also questioned how the savings from its removal have been used.
Otti, a member of the opposition Labour Party, has also said his support for some policies of President Bola Tinubu’s administration should not be interpreted as support for Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid.
