* Taiwo Oyedele
The Pathfinder
Friday October 31, 2025
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Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, has said the proposed 5% fuel surcharge (tax) will not be implemented until there is a significant improvement in key economic indicators, particularly an appreciation of the naira or a fall in global crude oil prices.
Also, Sunday Dare, the Special adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Media and Communication, has defended the proposed 5% fuel surcharge (tax)saying that the policy is never a burden, but a bridge — from dependence to independence, from vulnerability to strength.
Oyedele speaking at the Haulage and Logistics Magazine Conference & Exhibition in Lagos yesterday noted that while the surcharge is a sound policy designed to fund road maintenance, introducing it now would worsen the financial strain on Nigerians.
According to him, the surcharge which was first introduced under the ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo administration, was intended to dedicate part of fuel revenues to road repairs — 40% for federal roads and 60% for states and local governments roads.
“The idea is brilliant and already being implemented in more than 150 countries,” Oyedele said, adding that most of Nigeria’s 200,000 kilometres of roads are in poor condition.
He clarified that although the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) had requested to start collecting the levy after fuel subsidy removal, the committee rejected the move.
“We said no – introducing such a tax now would be insensitive,” he stated.
The Committee, he added, included the surcharge in the draft tax law but with safeguards requiring the Minister of Finance to issue an official order before it takes effect.
“For me, the right time will be when the naira strengthens or crude prices drop, so the surcharge won’t raise pump prices,” he said.
Oyedele also assured that the ongoing tax reforms would deliver significant relief to the haulage and logistics sector by eliminating multiple taxation, reducing costs, and improving efficiency.
“We are not introducing new taxes; we are removing the many duplicated ones that frustrate transporters and increase prices,” he said.
He explained that under the new policy, small transport and logistics businesses with annual turnover below N100 million will be exempt from company income tax, while eligible operators will benefit from VAT refunds and tax incentives.
Dare
In another development, spokesperson to President Bola Tinubu, Sunday Dare, has claimed the president’s approval of a 15 per cent import duty on petrol and diesel is a bridge and not a burden on Nigerians.
Dare made the assertions in a statement on his X account on Friday, while reacting to Tinubu’s approval of a 15 per cent import duty on petrol and diesel.
Recall that there has been diverse reactions from Nigerians, stakeholders and economists alike over the new tariffs and their possible impact on the price of fuel and diesel.
In a clarification, Dare said the policy is designed to reverse the fuel and diesel import dependency trend by encouraging local refining, boosting domestic capacity, and ensuring that Nigeria’s oil wealth translates directly into national prosperity.
He noted that the tariff will mark imported fuel as less competitive and encourage local refineries such as Dangote Refinery.
He said as local refining ramps up and supply strengthens, prices of petrol are expected to moderate while jobs, investment, and industrial activity expands.
“It’s no longer news that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved a 15 per cent import duty on petrol and diesel—a bold and strategic move aimed at reshaping Nigeria’s energy landscape.
“For years, the nation has depended heavily on imported fuel despite being a leading crude oil producer, draining foreign exchange and exporting jobs that should have been created at home.
“This new policy is designed to reverse that trend by encouraging local refining, boosting domestic capacity, and ensuring that Nigeria’s oil wealth translates directly into national prosperity.
“By making imported fuel less competitive, the government is tilting the market in favour of local refineries such as Dangote and other modular plants, laying the groundwork for a self-sustaining and resilient energy sector.
“As local refining ramps up and supply strengthens, prices are expected to moderate while jobs, investment, and industrial activity expand.
“This policy is therefore not a burden, but a bridge — from dependence to independence, from vulnerability to strength,” he wrote on X.
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