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Dr Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, the presidential candidate of the Accord Party, has stated that petrol can be retailed at a sustainable rate of ₦605 per litre under an Accord administration, with values potentially dropping between ₦200 and ₦300 if production expenses and foreign exchange rates are stabilized.
Hashim, a persistent critic of ending the fuel subsidy, asserted that the proposed ₦605 rate does not constitute a hidden subsidy, emphasizing it can be accomplished without shrinking government earnings or Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) funds.
“₦605 per litre is our starting sustainable price for petrol. Nobody will buy petrol above ₦610 under our government. It could be as low as ₦200,” he stated.
The Accord standard-bearer contended that attention should shift toward calculating the true expense of extracting, refining, hauling, and supplying petrol domestically instead of automatically tying local prices to global market benchmarks.
He characterized past justifications for ending subsidies as mathematical manipulation, arguing that gaps between domestic rates and international markers should not be mislabeled as subsidy deficits.
“Any time you sell a product above its legitimate cost of production, refining, transportation and insurance, you cannot call the difference between that price and an international benchmark a subsidy loss. That is opportunity cost,” he noted.
Hashim called for an independent forensic review of the entire oil supply chain to uncover actual delivery expenses per litre for everyday buyers.
He insisted such evaluations should examine crude extraction, procurement contracts, processing, moving, storage, insurance policies, pipeline management, and delivery logistics.
“Show Nigerians the books. Publish the production cost. Publish refinery cost. Publish transportation. Publish insurance. Publish every margin. Let the data speak,” he demanded.
According to him, exorbitant energy tariffs in Nigeria should not blindly pass down to consumers without evaluating underlying drivers of those expenses.
Hashim questioned why domestic oil production costs run higher than comparable oil nations, pointing to contracting loops, security failures, operational waste, and potential price inflation as critical problem areas.
“Before asking Nigerians to pay more, government must first explain why it costs so much to produce our own oil. If the cost is genuine, show us the evidence. If it is inefficiency, corruption or inflated contracting, fix it,” he remarked.
He stated that ordinary citizens currently shoulder systemic operational losses via inflated market pump prices.
“The Nigerian people should not pay for inefficiency twice. They should not pay for inflated costs inside the system and then be told that the resulting high price is the inevitable consequence of subsidy removal,” he added.
Hashim explained that his framework relies heavily on two pillars: appropriate production outlays and realistic currency exchange alignments.
He projected that an Accord government would target an exchange band of ₦525 to ₦700 per dollar, maintaining that exchange stability cuts naira inputs across the board.
“We will achieve this strictly by ensuring appropriate production cost and appropriate exchange rate,” he noted.
Hashim reiterated that lower retail figures would not compromise state finances.
“The reduction will not be at the detriment of government revenue or below current FAAC. We are not going to make petrol cheaper by making government poorer,” he claimed.
He reasoned that cheaper energy would spur industrial output, ease transit and manufacturing burdens, boost purchasing power, and broaden public revenue pools.
“Our objective is not simply cheap petrol. Our objective is a productive Nigerian economy in which affordable energy, stronger production and stronger government revenue reinforce one another,” he said.
Hashim clarified that the ₦200 to ₦300 projection functions as a medium-term target tied to structural reforms rather than immediate day-one promises.
“₦605 is the starting sustainable price. If we get production costs right and achieve the exchange-rate target, the price could come down to ₦200 or ₦300,” he explained.
He further recommended faster domestic processing capacity, transparent supply chains, and aggressive elimination of leakages.
Hashim maintained that state interventions in pricing are valid if structured transparently to target distinct economic goals.
“The issue is not whether government can intervene. The issue is whether government intervention is transparent, productive and accountable. Subsidy should protect Nigerians and the productive economy, not enrich intermediaries,” he stressed.
He appealed to citizens to anchor pricing discussions around verified logistics numbers rather than political posturing.
“Let the data speak. Tell Nigerians exactly what it costs to produce the crude, what it costs to refine it, what it costs to transport it and what every margin represents. Then we can have an honest conversation about subsidy,” he said.
Hashim concluded that the 2027 polls should revolve around policy solutions rather than personality contests.
“Nigeria does not have to choose between affordable petrol and government revenue. We can have both. But we must stop using accounting to hide inefficiency and start using economics to build prosperity,” he declared.
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