The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has challenged Senator Abdul’aziz Yari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) to explain how Nigerians have benefited from the estimated N15.8 trillion additional revenue generated from the removal of petrol subsidy and foreign exchange reforms.
The opposition party threw down the gauntlet in a statement issued on Sunday in Abuja by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, in response to Yari’s dismissal of promises of economic relief as unrealistic.
The ADC said Yari’s comments could not be taken lightly, noting that he was speaking not only as an APC senator but also as the Director-General of President Bola Tinubu’s re-election campaign.
According to the party, figures attributed to the Minister of Finance showed that subsidy removal and foreign exchange reforms generated about N15.8 trillion in additional resources for the Federation between June 2023 and December 2025.
It said about N5.4 trillion went to the Federal Government, another N5.4 trillion to state governments and N3.9 trillion to local governments.
The party also claimed that states received about N47.25 trillion in Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) disbursements between 2023 and 2025, with allocations rising from N10.09 trillion in 2023 to N15.26 trillion in 2024 and N21.90 trillion in 2025.
The ADC, however, lamented that the huge increase in government revenue had yet to translate into relief for Nigerians, who continue to battle rising food, fuel and transportation costs.
It said petrol prices rose from about N185 per litre in May 2023 to more than N1,300 in many locations by August 2025, while food inflation crossed 40 per cent at some points during the period.
“The contradiction is impossible to ignore. Government is counting trillions while Nigerian families are counting the meals they can afford. If governments are receiving substantially more money, why are Nigerians getting substantially less food to eat?” the party asked.
The ADC also questioned how state governments utilised their increased revenues, noting that about 20 states reportedly borrowed N458 billion in 2025 despite the rise in FAAC allocations.
“After N47.25 trillion to states in three years, Nigerians have a right to ask: where are the results?” the party said.
It challenged the Federal and state governments to publish details of projects executed with the additional revenues, particularly in the areas of education, healthcare, roads and mass transportation.
The opposition party also knocked the Federal Government over the pace of implementation of the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) initiative, arguing that the programme had yet to reach Nigerians on the scale needed to significantly cut transportation costs.
The ADC maintained that it was not advocating a return to what it described as the opaque and corruption-ridden petrol subsidy regime.
Rather, it said its alternative would focus on expanding domestic refining capacity and introducing targeted, transparent interventions aimed at reducing fuel prices and easing the cost-of-living crisis.
The party urged Yari and the APC to present Nigerians with a clear economic agenda ahead of the 2027 general election, especially on plans to bring down the cost of food, fuel and transportation.
“If Senator Yari says subsidy can never return, then he must tell Nigerians what the President’s campaign is offering instead,” the ADC said.
It added that the 2027 election would be determined by which political party could provide practical solutions to Nigeria’s economic challenges.
“The 2027 election will not be about who shouted ‘liar’ the loudest. It will be about who can put food on Nigerians’ tables, create jobs, provide security, and reduce the cost of living. Nigerians have sacrificed enough. They need a break,” the party said.
