Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has expressed concern over Nigeria’s rising debt profile, accusing the President Bola Tinubu administration of reckless borrowing and describing the country’s fiscal situation as “fiscal vandalism” following reports that the Federal Government exceeded its approved 2024 borrowing limit by ₦4.79 trillion.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said the Federal Government’s total fresh borrowing rose to ₦12.62 trillion, despite earlier assurances that the removal of fuel subsidy, tax increases and other economic reforms would reduce borrowing and stabilise the nation’s finances. He argued that instead of fiscal discipline, Nigerians were witnessing what he described as “endless borrowing, ballooning debt and unprecedented waste.”
The former Vice President, who is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), cited figures released by the Budget Office, which reportedly showed that the Federal Government borrowed 61.2 per cent above the amount approved by the National Assembly for 2024. He also questioned the source of an additional ₦3.19 trillion reportedly obtained as “budget support,” noting that no such provision existed in the approved budget and that there had been no clear explanation of where the funds came from.
According to Atiku, the latest borrowing is part of what he described as a worrying pattern under the Tinubu administration, alleging the existence of padded budgets, duplicated allocations, funds concealed under the Service Wide Vote, the creation of unnecessary government agencies and excessive spending on luxury vehicles while essential sectors continue to suffer. “This is not governance. It is a debt addiction,” Atiku said.
He questioned what the borrowed funds were being used for, insisting that they were clearly not improving education, healthcare, security or infrastructure. According to him, schools remain in poor condition, hospitals are underfunded, insecurity persists despite complaints by security agencies over inadequate funding, while many roads remain in terrible shape and electricity has become increasingly expensive for Nigerians.
Atiku also pointed to what he described as a contradiction in the government’s fiscal management, noting that rising global crude oil prices had reportedly generated an estimated ₦7.98 trillion oil windfall for the Federal Government in recent times. Despite the increased revenue, he said the government had continued to accumulate more debt instead of reducing borrowing.
He further cited the Budget Office report, which allegedly showed that debt servicing consumed ₦12.36 trillion, exceeding the budgeted amount by more than 52 per cent. He warned that Nigeria was approaching a situation where government borrowing would simply be used to repay existing debts rather than finance development.
“No responsible government mortgages the future of unborn generations while simultaneously presiding over duplicated budgets, wasteful expenditures, opaque financial practices and an ever-expanding bureaucracy. Where is all the money going?” Atiku asked.
The former Vice President argued that government borrowing continues to rise regardless of increases in revenue, taxes or savings from subsidy removal.
“Whenever revenues increase, borrowing also increases; whenever taxes increase, borrowing still increases; whenever subsidy is removed, borrowing accelerates; and whenever budgets are padded and duplicated, borrowing becomes the answer once again. This is not governance. It is a debt addiction,” he said.
He maintained that Nigeria needs a government that lives within its means, eliminates waste, promotes transparency, blocks financial leakages and channels public resources into productive investments rather than sustaining what he described as an endless cycle of borrowing.
“The Nigerian people cannot continue paying today’s taxes to service yesterday’s loans while tomorrow’s generations inherit only debt,” Atiku added.
