Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The controversy began with a viral video. Edo State Governor Monday Okpebholo, speaking to a gathering of All Progressives Congress supporters, recounted a recent trip to London where he decided to check the price of petrol. "I was in London last week, and I told my friend, let's go and buy fuel just to know the cost of fuel in England compared to Nigeria," he said. "After conversion, it was over N3,000 per litre of fuel. We are doing very well here. The president is stabilising the economy." Okpebholo, who was addressing party faithful during the "Operation Rescue Benin-Asaba Road" event, presented the comparison as evidence that Nigerians were better off than they realised and that President Bola Tinubu's economic policies were yielding results. "Nigeria is in a safe hand," he declared. He described Tinubu as "an economist who is doing everything necessary to stabilise the economy," adding, "Our president is not a supermarket man. The supermarket people, let them wait."
The governor's remarks were intended to defend the administration against public anger over soaring petrol prices, which currently average about N1,385 per litre in Lagos and N1,430 in Abuja, according to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company's latest pump-price list. In the United Kingdom, the average petrol price was about £1.74 per litre as of September 24, equivalent to more than N3,000 at the prevailing exchange rate. On the surface, the numbers appeared to support Okpebholo's argument: Nigerians pay less at the pump than Britons. But the comparison, as critics were quick to point out, ignored the most important variable in any discussion about affordability: income.
Isaac Fayose, a businessman and political commentator, did not let the governor's remarks pass. In a video response on Saturday, September 27, 2026, Fayose dismantled Okpebholo's argument piece by piece, arguing that comparing pump prices without considering what workers earn was not just misleading but insulting to the intelligence of ordinary Nigerians. "See Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo State, making mockery of himself," Fayose began. "According to him, he travelled to London. He said someone took him to a petrol station to go and buy petrol. And when he got there, he realised that petrol in UK is N3,000 a litre compared to petrol in Nigeria, which is N1,500. So he is coming back home from UK with good news for you, to tell you that your own petrol is cheaper than the petrol in UK, forgetting to think."
What Okpebholo had forgotten to think about, Fayose argued, was the difference in earnings between the two countries. He laid out the arithmetic in stark terms. "Minimum wage in Nigeria is N70,000," he said. "That means in a month, with your salary in Nigeria, minimum wage, you can only buy 49 litres of petrol. But minimum wage in UK is £13 to £15 an hour. That means in a month in UK, you can make up to £2,000, which is about N4 million. In UK, there's free medical, the roads are good, there's 24 hours light and security, but he didn't factor all those ones." The contrast was devastating in its simplicity. A Nigerian worker earning the minimum wage would have to spend their entire monthly income to buy 49 litres of fuel. A British worker earning the minimum wage could buy hundreds of litres and still have money left over for rent, food, and other expenses.
Fayose's intervention tapped into a deep vein of public frustration. Since President Tinubu announced the removal of the petrol subsidy on May 29, 2023, fuel prices have soared, transportation costs have risen, and the cost of food and basic commodities has spiralled. The government has repeatedly argued that the pain is temporary and that the reforms will eventually deliver economic prosperity. But for millions of Nigerians who are struggling to feed their families and keep their businesses afloat, the promise of future prosperity offers little comfort in the present. Okpebholo's comparison was seen by many as tone-deaf, an attempt to celebrate a policy that has made life harder for the very people he governs.
The governor's remarks also raised questions about the disconnect between political leaders and the citizens they are elected to serve. Okpebholo travelled to London, walked into a petrol station, and observed a price that, when converted to naira, seemed high. But he did not walk into the homes of ordinary Nigerians, did not ask them how much of their income goes to fuel, transport, and food, did not listen to their stories of hardship. Instead, he returned with what he described as "good news" — the news that Nigerians were paying less than Britons. The problem, as Fayose pointed out, is that Nigerians are not Britons. They do not earn British wages. They do not have access to free healthcare, good roads, stable electricity, and 24-hour security. They are Nigerians, and they are struggling.
The exchange has also become a political flashpoint. Okpebholo is a member of the APC, a party that has staked its credibility on the success of Tinubu's economic reforms. His defence of the administration is consistent with his position as a loyal party man. Fayose, who has been a vocal critic of the Tinubu administration, is not a disinterested observer. His brother, Ayo Fayose, is a former governor of Ekiti State and a prominent figure in the opposition. But the political affiliations of the two men do not diminish the substance of Fayose's argument. The question of whether a litre of petrol is affordable is not determined by the sticker price alone. It is determined by what it costs in relation to what a worker earns.
The Nigerian minimum wage is N70,000 per month. The United Kingdom's minimum wage is £13 to £15 per hour, which translates to about £2,000 per month, or roughly N4 million. That is more than 50 times the Nigerian minimum wage. When placed in that context, the fact that petrol costs N3,000 per litre in the UK and N1,500 in Nigeria is irrelevant. What matters is that a British worker can afford to fill their tank without sacrificing their entire monthly income. A Nigerian worker cannot. That is the reality that Okpebholo's comparison obscured.
Fayose's closing words were a warning to Nigerians about the kind of leaders they had allowed to take control of their affairs. "These are the kind of people that you allowed to forcefully take over the affairs of your life," he said. His criticism has sparked widespread reactions online, with many Nigerians debating the merits of his argument and the propriety of the governor's remarks. Some supported Fayose's position, arguing that the comparison was insensitive and failed to account for the lived experiences of ordinary Nigerians. Others defended Okpebholo, noting that fuel prices in Nigeria are indeed lower than in the UK and that the government's reforms are necessary for long-term economic stability.
For now, the controversy has once again placed the question of fuel affordability at the centre of national discourse. The government's argument that Nigerians should be grateful for lower pump prices is unlikely to sway a population that is struggling to make ends meet. As Fayose reminded his audience, gratitude is difficult to summon when your salary cannot buy you a full tank of petrol. The debate is not just about fuel prices. It is about the widening gap between the promises of political leaders and the daily realities of the people they govern.
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