By| Goodluck E.Adubazi, Abuja
‘Bola, You See Why It Is Good to Go to School; Your 30-Day Fuel Discount Is Yahoo-Yahoo, Deception 101″, Atiku Stated.
Former Vice-President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has criticised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over the Federal Government’s 30-day petrol discount initiative, describing it as “yahoo-yahoo” and “deception 101.”
Atiku made the remarks on Friday while speaking at the inauguration of the Presidential Campaign Council for himself and former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, at the Musa Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja.
The ADC presidential candidate said Nigerians deserved a better life, accusing the Tinubu administration of making life increasingly difficult for citizens. He promised that, if given the opportunity to lead the country, he would work to make life affordable for Nigerians again.
“I will stand with you until we make life of all of you affordable again,” Atiku declared.
He accused the Tinubu administration of making life unbearable for Nigerians while asking them to endure economic hardship, arguing that the President and his associates continued to travel while ordinary citizens struggled with rising living costs.
According to Atiku, the rising price of petrol has contributed to increases in the prices of essential goods and services, making life more difficult for households and businesses.
“You have demanded painful sacrifice from the people while you, your family and friends are jet-setting all over the place. You told Nigerians to be patient. The price of petrol has pushed up the price of almost everything else. But now that an election is approaching, you have suddenly discovered their pain,” he said.
Atiku argued that Nigerians did not need a press conference to understand the hardship they had experienced under the current administration, insisting that citizens would hold the government accountable for its economic policies.
He particularly faulted the government’s announcement of a 30-day petrol discount at Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) filling stations, with priority reportedly given to public transport operators.
Questioning the reach and sustainability of the initiative, Atiku asked how many NNPC stations were available across the country and whether the temporary measure could provide meaningful relief to the millions of Nigerians affected by high fuel prices.
He contrasted the government’s latest initiative with his proposed economic relief measures, accusing the administration of previously dismissing his proposals before adopting what he described as a limited version of the same approach.
“We also proposed a measure to contain fuel prices. But hold on, when I proposed targeted support to these workers, you called me ignorant of economic policy. Your government said it could not be done. Now, in a desperate and clumsy retreat, you have shamelessly embraced the principle,” he said.
Atiku questioned what would happen when the 30-day discount expired, arguing that the policy offered no lasting solution to the country’s fuel-price challenges.
“What happens on day 31? Because you promised 30 days. What happens on day 31?” he asked.
He accused Tinubu of adopting his production-subsidy proposal while removing what he considered its essential components and replacing it with a temporary discount.
“Bola, you have borrowed the idea but missed the lesson. You had a production subsidy and reduced it to a 30-day test,” Atiku said.
He added: “Bola, you are like a dull student supporting his classmates. The classmates knew that he walked away from the fire and then demanded marks for a few days.”
Atiku maintained that his criticism was not directed at the adoption of his proposal but at what he described as the government’s failure to implement a comprehensive and sustainable policy.
“You copied my production-subsidy proposal. Nothing wrong about that. You took away the part that makes it work and handed Nigerians a targeted discount. Where is the rest of the answer? Bola, see why you need to go to school,” he said.
The former vice-president argued that Nigerians needed durable economic relief rather than a temporary intervention introduced as the country approached another election cycle.
He said a 30-day discount could provide only short-lived relief, after which households, transport operators and businesses would again face the burden of high fuel prices.
“Your 30-day discount is a sugar rush, a fleeting pleasure, followed by the same brutal crash when the month ends,” Atiku said.
He argued that families could not plan their meals around temporary economic measures, while transporters needed predictable operating costs to maintain affordable fares.
According to him, businesses also required a stable economic environment to plan for the future, generate income and provide decent livelihoods for their workers.
Atiku further argued that a well-designed production-subsidy policy would offer a more sustainable approach to addressing the effects of high fuel prices.
Speaking further, Atiku recalled that he had offered to share his economic relief plan with the Tinubu administration during his State of the Nation address on September 19, 2026.
He expressed disappointment that the government had not accepted his offer, accusing it of subsequently introducing what he described as an inadequate petrol discount.
“In my last State of the Nation address on September 19, 2026, I offered to share my economic relief plan with you. Instead of accepting that offer in the national interest, you have given Nigerians a discount that leads nowhere,” he said.
Atiku said he had proposed the plan because of the need to improve Nigerians’ welfare, arguing that economic policies should be assessed by their impact on citizens rather than by who receives credit for introducing them.
“I offer the plan because Nigeria’s welfare must be paramount, regardless of who gets the credit. You just mocked it, then copied it back,” he said.
He accused the President of creating economic hardship through his policies and subsequently introducing a temporary relief measure without adequately addressing the underlying problems.
“Bola, you created the hardship, and now what? This is deception 101,” Atiku declared.
He questioned whether the government expected Nigerians to applaud a temporary discount after years of rising living costs and economic difficulties.
“How can you make daily life unbearable for years because one month of token relief is supposed to wipe away the record? Absolutely not,” he said.
Atiku insisted that Nigerians were neither foolish nor forgetful and would judge the administration based on their experiences and the consequences of its decisions.
The ADC presidential candidate also challenged the government’s emphasis on public transport operators in its petrol discount initiative, arguing that the effects of high fuel prices extended far beyond commercial transportation.
He noted that farmers transporting agricultural produce, traders restocking their shops, manufacturers operating generators and families purchasing food all bore the indirect costs of expensive petrol.
According to him, even Nigerians who did not personally purchase fuel for their vehicles were affected by increases in transportation, food and other essential expenses.
Atiku also questioned the effectiveness of the government’s compressed natural gas (CNG) initiative, recalling that a CNG station in his state had reportedly failed to function when the programme was announced.
He argued that announcing relief measures without ensuring their accessibility and effectiveness would do little to ease the burden on ordinary citizens.
“Do not hide behind the word discount,” he said, maintaining that the government needed to address the broader economic consequences of high energy costs.
He described the petrol discount as an admission that the administration had failed to adequately address the hardship experienced by Nigerians.
“Bola, you cannot announce a moral relief. It is a late confession of a failure,” Atiku said.
He further questioned whether Nigerians who had endured poverty and economic hardship for three and a half years would consider the temporary discount sufficient compensation for their difficulties.
Atiku maintained that the government had miscalculated by assuming that a short-term intervention would change public perceptions of its economic record.
He concluded that the country needed a comprehensive and sustainable economic recovery plan rather than a temporary intervention that would expire after 30 days.
Atiku’s criticism centres on the sustainability of the Federal Government’s petrol discount, the wider impact of fuel prices on the cost of living, and the need for longer-term measures to ease economic hardship.
