By Kingston Magare 16.9.2026
Nigerians have been warned they risked paying N5,000 per litre of petrol if they make the mistake of re-electing President Bola Tinubu.
Social Democratic Party presidential candidate Prince Adewole Adebayo raised the alarm Wednesday stating that the country’s economy will continue to struggle with President Tinubu floating of the naira and the full deregulation of the petroleum downstream sector.
“Petrol in Nigeria is imported and priced in United States Dollars ($). As long as the Central Bank allows the Naira to float without strong local production backing it, the currency will continue to weaken,” Prince Adebayo said in a press statement.
“If the exchange rate hits ₦3,500 to $1 in the coming years, the landing cost of fuel alone will exceed ₦4,000. You cannot have economic illiterates running your country and expect the people not to suffer. They don’t understand how to run a developing economy in a complex modern global dynamic. The realities are faster than their capabilities can operationalise.”
He noted that Nigerians have been left at the mercy of international market forces.
“The current policy completely removes the government’s ability to cushion international oil price shocks. If global crude prices spike due to geopolitical tensions, Nigerian consumers will bear 100% of the burden at the pump which automatically triggers a compounded inflation spiral.
“High fuel costs drive up transport inflation. Transport inflation drives up food inflation. This vicious cycle reduces the purchasing power of the Naira, forcing marketers to raise prices just to break even against operational costs.
“High interest rates from the Central Bank mean oil marketers are borrowing at exorbitant rates to fund imports. These financing fees, alongside decaying port and distribution infrastructure, add hundreds of Naira in hidden costs to every liter of fuel.”
He argued that the Tinubu administration chose “foreign IMF-style economic models” rather than pursue citizen-centered economics.
“We cannot run an economy purely on taxes, subsidy removal, and currency devaluation without producing anything internally,” Adebayo stated.
“A ₦5,000 fuel price is not a myth; it is basic mathematics based on the direction the Tinubu administration is walking. If Nigerians do not demand a change in economic philosophy, the pump price will catch up to this reality sooner than expected.”