By Princely Onyenwe | Editorial Desk
There is a question increasingly weighing on the minds of millions of Nigerians: Why must survival become such an expensive responsibility in a country blessed with enormous human and natural resources?
From petrol and cooking gas to rice, vegetable oil, chicken, onions, medications, transportation, building materials and virtually every household essential, the cost of living has become a daily battle for ordinary citizens. Parents are struggling, workers are overwhelmed, traders are counting losses, and families are increasingly finding it difficult to maintain even the most basic standards of living.
For many Nigerian households, feeding has become an economic calculation. Paying school fees is another mountain to climb. Medical bills have become frightening obligations, while transportation costs continue to consume a significant portion of already inadequate earnings. Even building a modest family home, once considered a legitimate aspiration of the average working Nigerian, is increasingly becoming an unrealistic ambition.
The situation raises a fundamental question about the direction of Nigeria’s economic management: What is the ultimate purpose of economic reforms if the ordinary citizen cannot feel their benefits in the marketplace, at home or in the workplace?
Certainly, the government cannot ignore the economic complications surrounding petroleum pricing. The removal of fuel subsidy, exchange-rate pressures, international crude oil prices, refining costs and distribution expenses all contribute to the present petroleum pricing structure. Equally, returning to an indiscriminate subsidy regime without addressing its historical financial and structural weaknesses could create another cycle of fiscal difficulties.
However, acknowledging these complications must not become an excuse for allowing citizens to bear an endless burden.
Government must demonstrate that it understands the relationship between petroleum prices and the general cost of living. Petrol is not simply a commodity purchased at filling stations. It is an economic input that influences transportation, agricultural production, food distribution, manufacturing, construction and virtually every productive activity.
When the cost of petrol rises, the transporter adjusts fares, the farmer pays more to move produce, the manufacturer spends more on logistics and power generation, and the market trader eventually transfers additional expenses to consumers. The consequences travel through the entire economic chain until the final burden lands on the Nigerian household.
Cooking gas presents another dimension of the problem. Millions of households have embraced it as an alternative to other cooking fuels, yet its affordability remains a serious concern. A country with enormous natural gas deposits should be doing considerably more to ensure that domestic gas availability, processing, distribution and pricing work in the interest of its citizens.
The government must therefore examine practical measures capable of reducing petroleum and domestic gas costs without destabilising public finances. Such measures could include reducing avoidable charges across the supply chain, improving domestic refining capacity, strengthening competition, expanding gas infrastructure and providing carefully targeted relief to vulnerable households and essential transport operators.
More importantly, Nigeria must confront the structural weakness of an economy that remains excessively dependent on petroleum revenues while importing or struggling to produce many basic necessities.
Agriculture must move beyond political promises and become a serious national economic priority. Farmers need accessible financing, modern equipment, affordable fertilisers, improved seedlings, irrigation facilities, security on farmlands and reliable transportation networks. Food production must increase, and the country must develop effective storage and processing systems to reduce post-harvest losses.
The manufacturing sector also requires deliberate government intervention through stable electricity, affordable credit, reliable infrastructure, favourable investment conditions and policies that encourage local production.
Nigeria cannot continue to celebrate its enormous economic potential while importing products that its agricultural and industrial sectors should be capable of producing competitively.
The figures published on the Federal Ministry of Finance’s economic dashboard provide an important perspective. Nigeria recorded 4.43 per cent real GDP growth in the second quarter of 2026, while headline inflation stood at 15.39 per cent and food inflation at 19.57 per cent in August 2026.
These figures suggest improvements in some macroeconomic indicators compared with the corresponding previous-year figures. However, there is an important distinction government must never overlook: a declining inflation rate does not automatically mean that prices have returned to affordable levels. It means prices are increasing more slowly, not necessarily falling.
For a family that previously struggled to purchase a bag of rice, a bottle of cooking oil or a few essential provisions, a reduction in the inflation rate offers limited comfort if those items remain beyond its purchasing power.
Economic growth must therefore be measured not only by national statistics, but also by the purchasing power of workers, the affordability of food, access to healthcare, school enrolment, employment opportunities and the ability of families to meet their daily obligations.
Government must also explain more transparently how the financial gains from major economic reforms are being translated into tangible benefits for citizens. If subsidy savings and increased public revenues are strengthening government finances, Nigerians deserve to see corresponding improvements in infrastructure, healthcare, education, public transportation, agricultural productivity and social protection.
The argument is not necessarily that every economic difficulty can be solved by reducing petrol prices alone. Rather, government must recognise that energy affordability is central to economic recovery and that citizens cannot continue to absorb every adjustment without adequate protection.
As the country approaches the 2027 general elections, the national conversation must change. Nigerians should demand more than campaign promises, political endorsements, party slogans and personality-driven contests.
The real election questions should be simple: Which policies will make food affordable? Which economic programme will reduce transportation costs? How will candidates make petrol and cooking gas more accessible? What practical measures will create employment, improve electricity supply, strengthen local industries and make education and healthcare affordable?
These are the issues that should dominate political manifestos, public debates and engagements between candidates and the electorate.
An election should not merely be a contest over who occupies political office. It should provide citizens with an opportunity to interrogate competing economic visions and demand measurable commitments from those seeking their mandate.
Every candidate seeking the people’s mandate must understand that election campaigns are not opportunities to rehearse economic difficulties, defend unpopular policies or offer endless explanations for why citizens are suffering. They are opportunities to demonstrate preparedness for leadership by presenting workable solutions to the problems confronting the country.
Nigerians want to know what candidates intend to do differently, how they intend to do it, when citizens should expect results and what measurable outcomes they are prepared to be held accountable for.
Campaign speeches must therefore go beyond attractive promises. Political parties and their candidates must demonstrate how their proposed policies will translate into cheaper food, affordable energy, employment opportunities, accessible healthcare, quality education, improved infrastructure and better living conditions.
In other words, election campaigns must speak for themselves through the quality, practicality and credibility of the solutions presented to Nigerians. Rhetoric without a clear implementation plan is not an economic programme, and promises without measurable commitments should not be mistaken for a development agenda.
Nigerians are tired of an economy in which parents must choose between paying school fees and meeting household expenses, where patients postpone medical treatment because of financial constraints, and where workers spend a disproportionate part of their earnings simply getting to work.
A country cannot sustainably build prosperity on the exhaustion of its citizens. Neither can economic reforms command lasting public confidence if the people are unable to identify meaningful improvements in their everyday lives.
Government must listen, rethink, recalibrate where necessary and accelerate productive diversification. The objective should not be to preserve impressive economic statistics at the expense of human welfare, but to build an economy in which national progress translates into household relief.
The ultimate measure of governance is not how frequently government announces economic reforms, how impressively political leaders explain economic challenges or how attractively candidates package their campaign promises. It is how substantially their policies and decisions improve the lives of the people.
As the 2027 political contest approaches, Nigerians must demand substance over slogans, solutions over explanations and measurable commitments over political rhetoric.
After all, what is the value of economic growth if millions of citizens cannot comfortably afford food, fuel, education, healthcare and decent shelter? Nigerians need solution to salvage the county. The way forward is more than campaign jargon and exchange of words. Campaign speaks for itself.
