Duke: Nigeria Possesses Every Known Form of Energy and Yet Remains Poor in Energy
*Says budget still around $25bn in 45yrs
*Reveals subsidy fraud began under Abacha
Sunday Ehigiator
Former Governor of Cross River State, Donald Duke, has said despite possessing every known form of energy, Nigeria remained energy-poor and largely unproductive, a situation he blamed on decades of poor governance and misplaced priorities.
Duke made the remarks yesterday, at the 2025 Annual Luncheon of the Government College Ughelli Old Boys Association (GCUOBA), Lagos Branch, held at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos, where he served as chairman of the occasion.
He lamented that Nigeria’s national budget, in real terms, has stagnated at about $25 billion for over four decades, despite a near threefold increase in population.
“Between 1979 and 1983, Nigeria’s average national budget was about $25 billion, with a population of roughly 75 million people. Today, our population is over 230 million, yet our budget still hovers around that same figure. That alone explains why we have most of the problems we are facing,” Duke said.
According to him, “the fundamental purpose of governance is to ensure the optimal productivity of citizens within a safe and orderly environment,” arguing that Nigeria has failed in this regard.
He described the country as a largely unproductive nation, forced to scramble for limited resources, despite its vast human and natural endowments.
“The real question is whether those who have had the opportunity to govern, and those currently in government, truly understand why they are there. I have an acronym I like to use: SHIT; Skills, Health, Infrastructure, and Technology. That is what we should be focusing on.”
Duke also criticised Nigeria’s energy management, noting that the country was endowed with all known sources of energy, ranging from human and hydrocarbon to solar and solid minerals such as lithium, yet continued to struggle with energy access and affordability.
“Nigeria has every form of energy known to man, including the most modern ones, yet we remain energy-poor. There is no better description of Nigeria than a land of abundance that is thirsty,” he said.
On current fuel pricing, the former governor dismissed the long-standing fuel subsidy narrative, describing it as a scam that has been perpetuated for years.
He claimed that manipulation within the subsidy regime began during the military era under late General Sani Abacha.
“Honestly, I don’t believe there’s anything like that. This is a scam that has been perpetrated on this country for a long, long time. And I’ll explain myself. For a barrel of oil, there are 45 products. The ones that concern us most are PMS and diesel. But there’s aviation fuel, there’s kerosene, there are all sorts of things.
“This oil is ours. It’s not that we’re importing it. It’s our resource. If you take a barrel of oil and refine it, and you take the 14 by-products, take 12 from the 14 by-products and sell them at commercial rates.
“I believe, and I have facts to prove this, that diesel and PMS, which are the most sought after, can be given at a fraction of the cost that they are given today. When you extrapolate on that, you can imagine the kind of money our people have made in this country.
“I had the advantage of being a member of the National Economic Intelligence Committee under the government of General Abacha. And that’s when that scam started. When he looked us pointedly in the face and said he wasn’t interested in keeping our refineries working.
“The price of fuel, I heard a few days ago, has dropped to N600; if you’re going to drop from 800 or 900 to 600, it tells you that something is going on there.”
Duke stressed that energy availability and affordability are central to national development, adding that nature itself has provided abundant alternatives that remain untapped.
Beyond energy, he emphasised education and skills acquisition as the foundation of productivity, warning that decades of neglect have contributed to Nigeria’s current insecurity challenges.
