TINUBU DID NOT INCREASE PRICES TO PUNISH YOU — HE REMOVED THE LIES THAT WERE KILLING NIGERIA – 9 FACTS OPPOSITION WILL NOT TELL YOU

Obonguwana Micheal Joseph Okon, Ituk Mbang, AKS

1. He did not increase prices for profit – he removed a fraudulent subsidy system that was bankrupting Nigeria. When Tinubu assumed office May 29, 2023, Nigeria was spending N4.39 trillion on fuel subsidy in 2022 alone – more than Education, Health and Defence combined. 80% of that benefit went to the richest 40% who own cars and generators, while the poorest 40% got less than 3% according to World Bank 2023 Public Finance Review. The country was borrowing 100% of what it borrowed just to pay subsidy. There was no budget for subsidy from June 2023. It was emergency surgery, not wickedness.

2. The Dollar from N400 to N1,372 is the truth about our Naira, not Tinubu’s creation. Before June 2023, Nigeria ran multiple exchange rates – CBN sold at N460/ $, I&E window at N600/$, black market at N750/$. This created massive arbitrage where connected individuals got cheap dollars and sold at profit without producing anything. Tinubu unified the market on June 14, 2023. The naira fell to reflect true value. That unification generated N15.8 trillion between June 2023 and December 2025 – N5.4tr for FG and N10.4tr for states and LGAs – because customs duties and dollar revenues were now valued properly, not subsidized for rent-seekers. Today official-parallel premium has fallen from over 60% to below 5%.

3. International Passport from N35k to N100k/N200k is about integrity and ending extortion. The Ministry of Interior explains the hike in 2024 and 2025 was to fund Africa’s largest centralised personalisation centre, to guarantee printing capacity 5 times our need, to ensure passport within 1 week of enrolment instead of 6-month backlog, and to remove approval power from Passport Control Officers who extorted Nigerians up to N200k-N300k for a booklet. The old cheap price was fake – Nigerians were already paying over N200k to touts. Now Diaspora price remains $150 and $230, and production is 24-hour vetting.

4. Electricity tariff from N95 to N209.5 for Band A is cost-reflective reform to save the sector. Nigeria’s power sector had N3 trillion annual subsidy debt. Tinubu signed Electricity Act 2023 on June 8, 2023 ending federal monopoly, allowing states to generate and distribute. The Band A tariff review in April 2024 was to guarantee minimum 20 hours daily supply for those who get it, and it cut projected subsidy from N3tr to N1tr, freeing money for health and education. Without it, the entire grid would collapse from illiquidity.

5. University fees, CAC from N10k to N22k, Driver’s License and clearing cost from N4.5m to N16m are effects of FX unification, not presidential decree. Universities increased fees because their running costs – diesel from N781bn in 2023 to N1.34tr in 2025, imported lab equipment, raw materials from N3.04tr to N6.64tr – all doubled after naira found its true value. CAC and FRSC fees are statutory agencies adjusting to operational cost and concessionaire PPP costs. Clearing cost for 40ft container jumped because customs duties are calculated in dollars – when dollar moves from N460 to N1550, naira value of same duty multiplies. That is not Tinubu taxing you more, it is naira reflecting reality.

6. Toyota Corolla from N1.8m to N9m and cooking gas from N6,500 to N17,500 is global and forex driven. Cars are imported. With dollar at N1,535 in Dec 2024 vs N463 in June 2023, plus global shipping inflation, car prices must rise. Cooking gas is priced internationally and Nigeria still imports over 40% of LPG. Tinubu’s answer is domestic refining – Dangote 650k bpd refinery started January 2024, Port Harcourt, Warri, Kaduna being revamped, and $5bn NLNG Train 7 to boost gas supply, so we stop importing what we have.

7. The money saved is now going to Nigerians, not smugglers. Because of subsidy and FX removal, FAAC allocations now exceed N2 trillion monthly on several occasions, up from less than N900bn. Zero states now owe salaries vs 27 states unable to pay in May 2023. Foreign reserves rose from $33bn in May 2023 to $50bn in 2026, highest in 13 years. This is the buffer that lets CBN defend naira and import food and medicine.

8. He created direct benefits for the common man that never existed before. NELFUND Student Loan – over N56bn disbursed to hundreds of thousands, now N303.9bn to 1.64 million students by July 2026, ensuring no Nigerian drops out due to fees. Presidential CNG Initiative – 120,000+ vehicles converted, buses deployed to states – Masaka to Berger fare fell from N1500 to N500 (66.7% reduction), Enugu to Nsukka from N4000 to N1600 (60%), Borno intra-city as low as N50 per trip (80%+). Driver reports N10k CNG gives 3 extra return trips vs petrol. Plus minimum wage from N30k to N70k, and over N3.3 trillion in fuel taxes and duties waived to cap pump price.

9. Reforms are painful but results are now visible. Inflation peaked at 34.19% in June 2024 after reforms, now down to 15.15% to 15.39% by August 2026. Petrol fell from N1,300 in early 2025 to N880 now, and N1,350 wholesale ceiling being worked on. GDP growth 3.87% in 2025 vs near collapse in 2023. World Bank confirms macro stabilization and LCCI says verdict is sound reform with inadequate shock absorbers – meaning reform was correct, only cushion needed scaling, which Tinubu is now doing with cash transfers, consumer credit, and CNG. You don’t build a house on a rotten foundation – he reset the foundation.