Subsidy Removal Has Unleashed Poverty, Hunger, and Insecurity, Says Ex-Minister Dalung

By Tgnews Reporter

Former Minister of Sports Solomon Dalung has lambasted President Bola Tinubu’s fuel subsidy removal as a hasty decision that has plunged Nigeria into deeper poverty, rampant inflation, widespread hunger, and escalating insecurity, rather than delivering the promised economic revival.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily program on Thursday, December 18, 2025, Dalung argued that the policy—announced dramatically by Tinubu during his May 2023 inauguration with the phrase “subsidy is gone”—was implemented without adequate consultation or understanding of Nigeria’s complexities.

He emphasized that at the time, no full cabinet or advisory team was in place, leaving the decision to just the newly sworn-in President and Vice President.

“Granted it (subsidy removal) has been done, it was done in a manner that demonstrated again that the President at that time did not fully understand the workings of government and the complex nature of the country called Nigeria,” Dalung stated.

“He needed consultation. At that time, there was no government—only the President and the Vice President had been sworn in, and that wasn’t a government. A proper government, with a cabinet, advisers, and policymakers, should have been consulted on a decision like that, but it wasn’t.”

Dalung, who served under former President Muhammadu Buhari, contended that the subsidy elimination has yielded no tangible benefits for ordinary Nigerians despite the government’s claims of freeing up funds for states and averting economic collapse.

Instead, he painted a grim picture of its fallout: “An individual just expressed it, and Nigerians swallowed it with the hope that something good would come out of it. Many years later, nothing has come out of it except poverty, hunger, inflation, and insecurity.”

The ex-minister further accused the Tinubu administration of opacity in managing the post-subsidy revenues, asserting that Nigerians deserve a higher standard of living given the influx of funds.

“Since we have withdrawn the entire subsidy, Nigerians should have been living better than the people in Dubai, considering the huge revenues that flowed into the government,” he remarked, highlighting a perceived failure in accountability.

Adding to his critique, Dalung claimed that the current government’s borrowings since 2023 have surpassed double the amount accumulated by Buhari over his eight-year term, exacerbating the nation’s fiscal woes amid ongoing economic hardships.

Tinubu has defended the subsidy removal as essential for long-term stability, pointing to increased allocations to states and investments in infrastructure. However, critics like Dalung echo widespread public discontent, with fuel prices soaring and inflation hitting multi-year highs, fueling protests and calls for policy reversals.