2027: Confusion as Peter Obi, Kwankwaso send conflicting messages on fuel subsidy

A significant policy rift has emerged within the Nigeria Democratic Congress presidential ticket after Vice Presidential candidate Rabiu Kwankwaso declared on Tuesday that an Obi-led administration would bring back fuel subsidies in a modified form — directly contradicting presidential candidate Peter Obi’s consistent public position against restoring any form of the subsidy regime.

Kwankwaso made the disclosure during an exclusive interview with Arise TV, as reported by DAILY POST, while discussing fuel pricing policy ahead of the 2027 elections.

“We are bringing subsidy in our own way,” the former Kano governor said, faulting President Bola Tinubu’s May 29, 2023 subsidy removal as a policy implemented “without adequate preparations” that created a “total mess economically.”

Kwankwaso said a future government should support the expansion of public and private refineries to drive down domestic fuel prices, adding that the objective would be to do “whatever it takes to put the price of oil down.”

However, Obi has held a firmly opposite position. At the Nigerian Bar Association conference in Port Harcourt in August 2026, he stated unequivocally: “I subscribe and maintain that you need to remove subsidy. Mismanagement of the proceeds shouldn’t be the reason for not removing it.”

Obi’s argument centres on redirecting subsidy savings into healthcare, education, agriculture and the sovereign wealth fund — not reversing the removal.

The contradiction has alarmed analysts. Chief Economist of ARKK Economics, Dr Samson Simon, warned that the policy split could signal deeper leadership tensions within a potential Obi-Kwankwaso administration.

“Kwankwaso is older and has been in politics longer than Peter Obi. I’m afraid that if they get to power, they may have a clash of personality and Kwankwaso might feel too big to take instructions from Peter Obi,” Simon told DAILY POST.

“They need to sit down together. They can’t be singing discordant tunes,” he added, urging Kwankwaso to defer to Obi as head of the ticket.

Political analyst Nduka Odo of Peaceland University, Enugu, similarly said the disagreement highlighted the urgent need for the NDC ticket to harmonise its economic policies before the 2027 election campaign intensifies.