Candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 presidential election Mr. Peter Obi, said the five percent petrol tax imposed on Nigerians by President Bola Tinubu administration is a big burden on Nigerians who are still struggling over his removal of fuel subsidy.
Obi in a post on his X regretted that instead of easing hardship, the government has imposed more burden on Nigerians by the tax.
He suggested that the government should have halted action on the five percent tax until Nigerians begin to see tangible improvements in their lives from all the many promises made by the president.
“Nigerians will pay a 5% tax when buying their everyday fuel or diesel at a time when millions can hardly even afford the cost of transportation.
“Mr. President just … boasted that Nigeria has met its revenue target for the year. Yet instead of easing hardship, the government imposes more burden on Nigerians.
“Even the so-called alternative, CNG, has become unaffordable, rising from about N230 to N450, while the promised subsidies on the CNG have quietly vanished,” he regretted.
The LP candidate argued that if the nation’s revenues are truly ‘excessive’ as claimed, “should they not first be used to fund education, healthcare, and pulling Nigerians out of poverty? Why tax citizens who cannot even breathe anymore?”
Obi reminded President Tinubu that leadership is not about imposing burdens but reducing people’s suffering, insisting that it is about care and compassion.
