ADC Slams Tinubu Over 15% Fuel Import Duty, Warns of More Hardship

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has criticized President Bola Tinubu’s approval of a 15 percent import duty on petrol and diesel, describing it as a harsh and ill-timed policy that will worsen the economic suffering of Nigerians.

In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party said that while it supports private investment in the energy sector, the welfare of citizens must not be sacrificed for profit.

The ADC questioned the government’s justification for the levy, noting that the Port Harcourt refinery, central to Nigeria’s local refining plan, collapsed just five months after a $1.5 billion rehabilitation, leading to a ₦366.2 billion loss.

“This new tax is both insensitive and misguided,” the statement said. “It could push petrol prices above ₦1,000 per litre, further burdening families, farmers, transporters, and small businesses already struggling with subsidy removal and inflation.”

The party accused the administration of running a “trial-and-error” economic system under the Renewed Hope Agenda, arguing that “economic growth that deepens poverty is unsustainable.”

The ADC called for an immediate reversal of the import duty, saying the government should focus on fixing refineries and boosting local capacity instead of taxing importers.

“A government that cannot manage its own refineries has no moral right to punish those keeping the country running,” the statement added.

It urged President Tinubu to adopt transparent, strategic economic policies, warning that “economic patriotism cannot be enforced through pain.”