Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has clarified that his proposed petroleum intervention is not a return to Nigeria’s discredited fuel import subsidy regime, but a targeted measure aimed at supporting domestic refining and reducing the cost of living.

The clarification was contained in a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, following comments attributed to an aide suggesting that an Atiku administration would restore fuel subsidy before eventually removing it.

Shaibu described the remarks as an “unauthorised, imprecise and materially misleading characterisation” of Atiku’s position, stressing that spokespersons were not authorised to redefine or improvise on policies already articulated by the former vice-president.

According to him, Atiku has never proposed restoring the import subsidy regime or setting an arbitrary date for its removal.

Instead, Shaibu said the former vice-president is proposing a targeted, capped and transparently budgeted intervention to support domestic refining and production, subject to independent auditing and measurable conditions.

He explained that the intervention would gradually become unnecessary as domestic refining capacity expands, fuel supply stabilises, competition increases and the market becomes capable of delivering affordable prices without government support.

“There is no arbitrary withdrawal date,” Shaibu said, likening the policy to scaffolding that should only be removed when a building is strong enough to stand on its own.

He urged Nigerians to focus less on the terminology surrounding the policy and more on the broader question of how to reduce the rising cost of living.

Shaibu accused the administration of President Bola Tinubu of transferring the impact of its reforms to Nigerian households, saying Atiku would instead focus on lowering production and transportation costs, strengthening domestic refining and restoring purchasing power.

He said the policy choice facing Nigerians was not simply between removing and restoring fuel subsidy, but between what he described as an “Expensive Nigeria” and an “Affordable Nigeria.”