Former vice president Atiku Abubakar has backed calls by the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) for government intervention with domestic refiners to reduce petrol prices.

Atiku said the position supported his argument that targeted intervention around domestic refining could help make energy more affordable for Nigerians.

In a statement issued on Thursday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said IPMAN’s position was significant because its members were directly involved in the purchase, distribution and sale of petroleum products.

“IPMAN has come late to this conversation, but it has come to the right conclusion,” Atiku said.

“The association is now saying that government cannot simply stand aside while petrol prices punish Nigerians and that deliberate subsidy around domestic refining can help bring prices down.”

Atiku has previously advocated a targeted intervention linked to domestic refining, arguing that it would differ from the petrol subsidy regime associated with imported products.

“Tinubu’s argument has always depended on deliberately confusing the import-subsidy bazaar and a transparent, production-linked intervention that strengthens Nigerian refining and delivers measurable relief to Nigerian consumers,” he said.

He argued that Nigeria should maximise the value of its crude oil by expanding domestic refining capacity and ensuring that the benefits reach consumers.

“Nigeria produces crude oil. It is economic foolishness to possess the raw material, fail to maximise its processing at home and then tell Nigerians that unaffordable fuel is the price they must pay for reform,” Atiku said.

He said his proposal was also consistent with objectives of the Petroleum Industry Act, including promoting domestic petroleum processing and improving access to petroleum products.

“The law itself recognises that local refining and affordability matter,” he said.

Atiku also criticised the impact of high petrol prices on household incomes and businesses, arguing that the cost of fuel affects transportation, food prices, production and distribution.

“The real test of petrol policy is not how cheap one litre appears after somebody converts it into dollars. The real question is how much of a Nigerian’s income and labour it consumes,” he said.

He cited the DailyFuels Fuel Affordability Index, which he said ranked Nigeria 91st and estimated that an average Nigerian required about 44 minutes of work to afford one litre of petrol.

Atiku said IPMAN should play a role in monitoring and implementing any future intervention, particularly if he wins the 2027 presidential election.

“I therefore invite IPMAN to join us in an unbreakable contract with the Nigerian people — not merely by acknowledging the principle of targeted intervention, but by bringing its experience, market knowledge and advisory capacity into the monitoring and implementation of this policy when we assume office in 2027,” he said.

He said any subsidy under his proposed administration would be tied to domestic refining, transparency and measures to prevent arbitrage.

Atiku also accused the President Bola Tinubu administration of considering a return of petrol subsidy ahead of the 2027 election, describing such a move as politically motivated.

He did not provide details or evidence for the claim, saying only that his team had received “credible intelligence” indicating that the administration was considering bringing back subsidy “through the back door”.

Atiku said Nigerians would distinguish between genuine economic relief and election-related measures.

He further argued that IPMAN’s position showed that the debate over petrol pricing was increasingly centred on domestic refining, affordability and consumer relief.

“IPMAN has not adopted every detail of my policy, and it does not need to,” he said.

“What matters is that one of the most important groups in the downstream petroleum sector has independently arrived at the central proposition Tinubu mocked: deliberate intervention around domestic refining can be used to pursue lower prices for Nigerian consumers.”

Atiku called on marketers, refiners, regulators, consumers and independent monitors to work towards a system that would support domestic refining and reduce the burden of energy costs on Nigerians.

“President Tinubu had the opportunity to put Nigerians first when they needed relief most. He chose hardship and called it reform,” he said.

Atiku is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the 2027 election.