2027: Abia PDP gov candidate backs Tinubu, demands subsidy gains

The 2027 governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in Abia State, Dr Kelechi Anosike, has backed President Bola Tinubu for a second term, saying the removal of fuel subsidy has increased revenue available to state governments and driven development across the country.

Anosike, in a statement by his media unit, said the policy had significantly increased allocations to the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, allowing governments to undertake more projects and meet their financial obligations.

He said the increase in revenue should, however, go beyond infrastructure and be translated into improved welfare for Nigerians who have continued to bear the effects of the subsidy removal.

“If anyone is asking why President Tinubu should get a second term and what he has done to earn it, they should be referred to those projects and massive developments across the 36 states and FCT,” he said.

Anosike noted that before the policy, some state governments borrowed from banks to pay salaries and pensions, adding that the situation had changed with the increase in federal allocations.

According to him, the economic gains of the policy should now be deliberately channelled towards easing the financial pressure on citizens.

“If Nigerians are asked to bear the pain of subsidy removal, Nigerians must also receive the welfare dividend of subsidy removal. That should become a new social contract,” he said.

The PDP candidate urged governors to introduce welfare programmes that would reduce the impact of rising transportation, food, healthcare and education costs.

He proposed a six-point welfare package covering food subsidy, transport subsidy, workers’ welfare, healthcare support, education welfare and youth enterprise development.

Anosike said the measures would help reduce the cost of living while creating opportunities for young people and protecting vulnerable members of society.

He also warned against an approach that prioritised infrastructure at the expense of citizens’ welfare, arguing that development projects would have little meaning if people could not afford necessities.

“People must be alive to use infrastructure. A good government should build roads and feed people, build hospitals and provide healthcare, build schools and support indigent students,” he said.

He said the proposed welfare-focused approach would guide his administration if he wins the 2027 governorship election in Abia.

Anosike said his administration would combine infrastructure development with programmes aimed at improving the living conditions and economic prospects of Abians, insisting that the people would remain the priority of his government.