Former Cross River State governor and presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Donald Duke, has promised to slash the retail price of petrol to about ₦300 per litre if elected president in the 2027 general elections. He made the pledge during an appearance on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief, where he strongly criticized President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms and argued that current fuel prices above ₦1,000 per litre are placing an intolerable burden on ordinary Nigerians.
Duke’s Plan: No Return to Fuel Subsidies
Duke insisted that achieving a ₦300 per litre pump price would not require a return to the historic fuel subsidy regime, which he characterized as a fraud-ridden scam. Instead, he advocated for a fundamental shift in how crude oil for domestic consumption is priced. According to Duke's proposal, Nigeria should stop subjecting locally consumed petrol to international market benchmarks.
He outlined a blueprint wherein the government allocates approximately 600,000 barrels of crude oil daily—the estimated volume needed for national consumption—directly to domestic refineries at the base cost of production. Under this framework, refining and distribution overheads would be added alongside a modest 5% to 10% profit margin, allowing local pump prices to settle around ₦300 per litre.
Export Balance to Generate Revenue
The balance of Nigeria’s daily crude output, which exceeds 1 million barrels, would then be exported at prevailing international prices to generate foreign exchange and federal revenue. Duke linked current petrol costs exceeding ₦1,000 per litre to rising poverty, insecurity, and crime, arguing that citizens earning a ₦70,000 minimum wage cannot afford current fuel prices.
Addressing the broader socio-economic conditions in the country, Duke cautioned that high energy costs directly contribute to rising poverty, banditry, and insecurity across the nation. He emphasized that with a national minimum wage of ₦70,000, it is mathematically unsustainable for citizens to spend the bulk of their monthly earnings simply filling a fuel tank.
Call for Public Policy Debates
Duke subsequently called on other 2027 presidential contenders to engage in public policy debates to defend their economic strategies and present concrete solutions to Nigeria's fuel crisis. His proposal comes as Nigerians continue to grapple with the effects of fuel price hikes, with many calling for government intervention to ease the burden on households and businesses.
