The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has cautioned against calls for the restoration of petrol subsidy, warning that a return to the old regime could undermine Nigeria’s improving fiscal position, weaken investor confidence and reverse gains recorded from the economic reforms of the President Bola Tinubu administration.

Tinubu announced the removal of petrol subsidy shortly after assuming office in May 2023, describing the policy as necessary to address the country’s fiscal challenges.

In an opinion article published in some national newspapers on Monday, August 24, 2026, titled, “Restoring Fuel Subsidy Will Reverse Nigeria’s Economic Gains,” Idris said reintroducing the subsidy would recreate many of the economic distortions that made the previous system unsustainable.

“Restoring subsidy would almost instantly return Nigeria to the economic conditions of 2022, recreating the same fiscal pressures, distortions, scarcity and incentives for arbitrage that made the old system unsustainable,” the minister said.

Idris argued that those calling for the return of petrol subsidy must consider the resources that would have to be diverted from other critical sectors of the economy to finance it.

He asked whether Nigeria should restore fuel subsidy at the expense of student loans and consumer credit for young Nigerians, higher allocations to state and local governments, infrastructure and security spending, as well as funding for healthcare, education and social protection.

“Do we restore petrol subsidy, or sustain student loans and consumer credit for young Nigerians? Do we restore subsidy, or preserve higher allocations to states and local governments? Do we restore subsidy, or continue funding roads, rail, power and security? Do we restore subsidy, or strengthen the fiscal capacity required to expand healthcare, education and social protection for vulnerable Nigerians?” he asked.

The minister recalled that Nigeria spent about $10 billion on fuel subsidies in 2022, at a time when oil production was declining and government revenues were under pressure.

He said the World Bank had warned at the time that the subsidy was consuming resources that could otherwise have been channelled into education, healthcare, infrastructure and social protection.

Citing the Federal Government’s recently presented Nigeria’s Reform Scorecard: The Benefits, Costs and Harms Prevented, Idris said the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, disclosed that subsidy savings had mobilised ₦15.8 trillion in resources for the Federation between June 2023 and December 2025.

He explained that the figure comprised approximately ₦5.43 trillion accruing to the Federal Government, ₦6.52 trillion to states and ₦3.88 trillion to local governments.

According to him, the ₦15.8 trillion should not be interpreted as a separate pool of cash but as resources released within the wider fiscal system of the federation following the removal of the petrol subsidy.

Idris said the additional fiscal space had strengthened the capacity of state and local governments to meet salary and pension obligations and invest in essential services, while also enabling the Federal Government to increase spending on infrastructure, security, agriculture and human capital development.

He added that the Reform Scorecard recorded approximately ₦6.47 trillion in additional expenditure on strategic infrastructure, while more than ₦400 billion had been committed to major social investment initiatives, including the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), MOFI Real Estate Investment Fund (MREIF) and the CreditCorp initiative.

The minister also said social transfers had reached more than 10 million Nigerian households.

However, Idris noted that the government was still bearing a significant electricity subsidy, estimated at ₦3.14 trillion between June 2023 and December 2025.

He warned that restoring petrol subsidy would place an additional strain on public finances at a time when the government was seeking to consolidate the gains of its economic reforms.

Idris said the Organised Private Sector and other stakeholders in the economy had also cautioned against reversing the reforms.

“Nigeria cannot build tomorrow’s economy by returning to yesterday’s unsustainable subsidy regime. We have moved beyond that model,” he said.

The minister urged Nigerians to assess the reforms within the broader context of the country’s long-term economic stability, arguing that sustained reforms were necessary to build a stronger, more productive and financially resilient economy.