Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has sharply criticised the Bola Tinubu administration over revelations that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited spent ₦17.5 trillion in one year on securing fuel pipelines, describing the development as unprecedented and deeply troubling.
In a statement released by the Atiku Media Office on Sunday, November 30, he said the disclosure “stands as one of the most brazen financial scandals in our nation’s history.”
He argued that the reported amount mirrored what Nigeria spent on fuel subsidy over 12 years, noting that “Nigeria spent roughly ₦18 trillion on fuel subsidy over a period of 12 years, a national programme that directly cushioned millions of Nigerians, stabilised the transport sector, and helped keep food prices manageable.”
The statement accused the government of diverting an enormous sum into opaque contracts, adding, “Yet, under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the country has now expended nearly the same amount in a single year on same subsidy and opaque pipeline security contracts awarded to private firms tied to associates and cronies of the President.”
It added that “the action of the President is akin to robbing Peter (Nigerians) to pay Paul (cronies). This is not governance. This is grand larceny dressed as public expenditure.”
Atiku said Nigerians had been urged to endure hardship after subsidy removal, yet the administration had “channelled ₦17.5 trillion, an amount that could transform Nigeria’s power sector, rebuild our refineries, or fund universal healthcare, into opaque security contracts whose beneficiaries are conveniently linked to those in power.”
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He questioned government spending categories, noting that “this same administration has spent N7.13tn on what it calls energy security cost to keep petrol prices stable, another N8.67tn on what it calls under recovery.” He described the terms as deceptive, calling them “balablu nomenclatures.”
Atiku demanded full disclosure, asking, “Who are the companies paid under these contracts? What specifically justifies a 38.7 percent rise in the amount of energy cost from N6.25tn in 2024 to N8.67tn in 2025?”
Consequently, he called for an independent forensic audit, insisting the government must “publish the full list of companies awarded these contracts” and justify the expenditure during economic strain.
He added that the spending represented a moral failure, saying, “This ₦17.5 trillion pipeline security expenditure is not merely a financial anomaly, it is a moral indictment on the Tinubu administration and a clarion call for full accountability.”
The figure reflected debts accumulated by the federation to NNPCL for pipeline protection and energy security operations in 2024.
The disclosure has intensified scrutiny over President Tinubu’s May 29, 2023 declaration that “fuel subsidy is gone,” a statement now seen as contradicting evidence of continued government support for petrol pricing.