‘Be thankful you’re better off than other African countries’: Tinubu tells Nigerians amid fuel crisis

On April 10, 2025, President Bola Tinubu was in Bayelsa State to commission several projects built by the state government.

During his speech, the President admitted that the current fuel price hike has increased the economic hardship, but demanded that Nigerians show some gratitude because they are better off compared to other African countries.

"Yes, I hear you from various angles of the economy. The fuel prices is biting hard, but look around, and let's just thank God together that you are better off. Listen to them in Kenya and other African countries what they are going through," Tinubu said at the event where he tasked Nigerians to embrace the spirit of gratitude.

Since the start of the US and Israel's conflict with Iran, the prices of crude oil have surged those leading to a global energy crisis that has impacted the price of fuel. In Nigeria, prices have soared by nearly 40% with pump price reaching ₦1,400 per litre.

In response, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) increased the crude oil cargo supply to Dangote refinery to 10 daily. Dangote's refinery currently caters to a substantial part of Nigeria's daily fuel consumption and fixes its gantry price at ₦1,200, with prices fluctuating along with the global cost of crude oil.

Tinubu's admission of the economic hardship caused by the increase in fuel prices might be a welcome development for Nigerians, but the President's demand that citizens should embrace gratitude has drawn criticism from social media, with some observers calling it insensitive and tone deaf.

While other African countries like Senegal, Tanzania, and, more recently, Ghana have announced measures to save costs and reduce the economic strain caused by the global energy crisis, President Tinubu's administration has yet to take any measures to cushion the effects of the fuel price increase.

However, during his speech in Bayelsa, Tinubu promised to continue working hard to ameliorate the people's hardship.

In reaction to the economic hardship, which the World Bank reported to have pushed 63% of Nigerians into poverty, the Nigerian Labour Congress has demanded a review of the 70,000 minimum wage, while the Trade Union Congress also demanded policies to address the fuel crisis.