The APC clarified that the government's actions were aimed at ensuring some degree of price stability and predictability.
Reports had surfaced indicating that in August, the government spent N169.4 billion to maintain the fuel pump price at N620 per liter. While the opposition seized on this revelation to criticize the Tinubu administration, the APC stated on Monday night that these substantial payments did not constitute a reintroduction of fuel subsidies.
The ruling party also criticized Phrank Shaibu, the Media Aide to the Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, for spreading what they termed "fake news" and engaging in other actions to discredit President Bola Tinubu's administration.
The APC emphasized that "Shaibu’s claim that fuel subsidy is back is not correct. Government’s intervention to ensure some measure of price stability and predictability does not amount to a return of the ruinous fuel subsidy of the recent past."
APC spokesman, Felix Morka, in a statement on Monday night, accused Shaibu of making unfounded statements and lacking a clear understanding of the issues. He suggested that Shaibu may be suffering from "post-electoral traumatic stress disorder (PeTSD)" due to his boss' repeated electoral defeats.
Morka defended the Tinubu administration's decisions, including removing fuel subsidies, harmonizing foreign exchange regimes, and signing into law the Students’ Loan Act, emphasizing their potential transformative impact on the country's economy. He also highlighted the appointment of skilled professionals to key economic institutions and diplomatic efforts with countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the United States of America.
The APC concluded that the fine details of these policies are still being worked out, and their valid objectives and potential impact remain intact. They clarified that a meeting with President Joe Biden during the United Nations General Assembly was unnecessary and not on President Tinubu's schedule.
