The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has warned that President Bola Tinubu’s planned implementation of fuel tax may be announced on inauguration day, if he’s re-elected, thereby pushing petrol prices beyond N1,500 per litre and worsening the already devastating cost-of-living crisis confronting millions of Nigerians.

The party was reacting to Finance Minister Taiwo Oyedele’s disclosure on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, that the government would introduce the fuel tax when economic conditions improve.

Also, the ADC Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) said the Director-General of the All Progressives Congress (APC) PCC, Senator Abdulaziz Yari, validated its position that the APC-led government “has failed to secure Nigeria and cannot offer credible solutions” to the country’s worsening security crisis.

However, a support group within the APC, BTO4PBAT, has warned that any reversal of the Federal Government’s fuel subsidy removal policy would plunge the country into another period of economic uncertainty.

The National Publicity Secretary of the ADC, Bolaji Abdullahi,said the government’s real plan was to activate the tax law once Tinubu is re-elected.

“They have already enacted the law for a five per cent tax on fuel under the Nigeria Tax Act, and President Tinubu has signed it into law since June 2025. If they have not activated it yet, it is 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,” Abdullahi said.

The party 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.

ADC questioned the administration’s justification for the proposed tax, arguing that it would support road infrastructure and fuel price stabilisation, insisting that Nigerians deserve measurable improvements before being asked to shoulder further financial obligations.

The party urged Nigerians to embrace the fuel production subsidy being proposed by its Presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, as the only way to bring down not only the cost of fuel, but also the cost of living generally.