Fuel: “They Were Giving Figures Of ₦700, And I Said I Could Even Do ₦500, Somebody said ₦300-Oyedele

Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, has criticised politicians promising cheaper petrol through fuel subsidies, describing their actions as political manoeuvring.

According to Arise TV on Monday, October 19, 2026, Oyedele made the remarks during an interview with the station’s business correspondent, Rotus Odiri, at the IMF and World Bank annual meetings in Bangkok, Thailand.

The minister said he initially considered the renewed calls for fuel subsidies a joke but became concerned when repeated claims began gaining public acceptance.

He explained that some politicians had continued to promote different petrol prices, prompting others to make competing promises to Nigerians.

Oyedele said, “I will tell you something. You know, I do not qualify to be a politician. Politicians have a way of trying to hold on to something. When this whole issue of subsidy started, I honestly thought it was a joke. It was repeated many times, and some people started believing it. Other politicians jumped on the bandwagon.”

Giving an example of the competing promises, the minister said some politicians had mentioned petrol prices of ₦700, while others suggested lower figures.

He stated, “They were giving figures of ₦700, and I said I could even do ₦500. Somebody said they could do ₦300. I said that very soon, somebody would say they could give it out for free.”

According to Oyedele, the Ministry of Finance initially avoided commenting on the political debate because it did not want to be drawn into partisan arguments.

He explained that the ministry, like the Central Bank of Nigeria, had to consider its responsibility to provide accurate information to the public rather than allow the discussion to be driven by political promises.

The minister said the decision to address the issue was motivated by the need to ensure that Nigerians had access to relevant economic data to assess the feasibility of the proposals.

Oyedele added that the government had a responsibility to guide citizens with reliable information, particularly when political claims could influence public expectations about petrol prices.

He said, “As this was happening, the Ministry of Finance, like the Central Bank, did not want to get involved in politics. It was a struggle because we did not want to say anything.”

He continued, “But I asked myself: do we not have a responsibility to the Nigerian people to guide them and provide them with data?”

The minister’s comments came amid renewed public debate over fuel prices and calls by some politicians for the restoration of petrol subsidies following the removal of the policy by President Bola Tinubu’s administration in 2023.

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