Finance Minister Oyedele Denies Plans for Fuel Tax

Taiwo Oyedele, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, has ruled out the introduction of a fuel tax, labeling reports suggesting otherwise as “fake news.” He stated that the Federal Government has no intention of imposing a fuel tax, emphasizing that it would be insensitive to do so after removing the fuel subsidy. Oyedele made these remarks during an interview with ARISE News, clarifying that some online reports misinterpreted his comments.

He urged Nigerians to disregard misleading headlines and referenced his interview conducted at the 2026 annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Bangkok, Thailand. He explained that a fuel tax would have been counterproductive while petrol was subsidized, as the government would effectively be paying the tax itself.

Oyedele stressed the need to focus on growing incomes faster than prices rather than suppressing prices, asserting that a fuel tax would add to the burden on Nigerians still affected by the subsidy removal.