Fuel Tax: Tinubu Might Soon Impose ‘Oxygen Tax,’ Adebayo Warns

THE presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the 2023 general elections, Adewole Adebayo, while criticising President Bola Tinubu’s approval of a 15 per cent import duty on refined petroleum products, describing him as a clever tax collector, who might soon impose ‘oxygen tax’ if care is not taken.
Speaking on a television programme, Adebayo, criticised the new tax regime as exploitative and anti-people policy, accusing Tinubu of overburdening Nigerians with taxes and his administration of being more interested in revenue collection than public welfare.
According to him: “President Tinubu is a clever tax collector. He wants to collect taxes from you for everything, including the oxygen tax, very soon. If you’re not careful, yes, the air we breathe. Just give him time; he’s going to get there.”
Adebayo described the new tax as unjust and inconsistent with the ideals Tinubu once espoused, noting: “It is an anti-people decision and a trend in the new Tinubu.
“Tinubu that used to be in SDP, following Abiola everywhere doing Hope 93, has practically changed to the side of the money people. They see you as a customer, not a citizen.”
He argued that the policy would worsen the hardship of Nigerians already grappling with rising living costs, adding: “If you put 15 per cent tariffs on imported petrol, who is going to pay for it? It’s going to be paid by the person who buys the petrol at the filling station.”
He faulted Federal Government’s continued reliance on imported fuel, blaming it for failing to rehabilitate the country’s refineries despite repeated investments, stating: “You are the reason why we cannot meet our domestic consumption.
“The President is the Minister of Petroleum. What kind of chaotic system is this?”
Adebayo urged the President to prioritise refinery repairs rather than introducing new taxes: “Call Heineken Lokpobiri and Bayo Ojulari and say, ‘I want those refineries to work in six months.’ Reduce importation to zero.”
The Federal Government has defended the new tax, saying it was meant to protect local refineries and stabilise the downstream sector, a move that could drike the prices of petroleum products higher.