Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has condemned the ₦1.08 trillion allocation to the Federal Cooperative College, Oji River, Enugu State, describing it as fraudulent and evidence that the 2026 Appropriation Act has been compromised.
In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku praised civic organisation Tracka for its independent budget analysis, which revealed that the college was allocated ₦1.08 trillion to execute 2,791 capital projects across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
According to Atiku, the revelation contradicts the Federal Government’s claims that its economic reforms, increased taxes and borrowing are driven by fiscal discipline and prudent management of public resources.
“Nothing exposes the hollowness of that claim more than a budget that turns a federal cooperative college into one of Nigeria’s largest project-implementing agencies,” Atiku said.
The former vice president questioned how an institution established primarily to promote cooperative education could suddenly become responsible for executing thousands of projects ranging from roads, drainage systems and solar streetlights to markets, football pitches, dialysis centres, ambulances, water schemes, recycling plants and empowerment programmes across the country.
He argued that the allocation violates basic principles of public finance and goes beyond the statutory responsibilities of the institution.
“Who decided that a cooperative college should become one of Nigeria’s biggest ministries by stealth? Under what law was it transformed into the implementing agency for 2,791 projects? Who nominated these projects, who approved them, who will supervise them, and who will be held accountable?” he asked.
Atiku maintained that the discovery casts doubt on the Tinubu administration’s commitment to transparency and accountability, accusing the government of operating what he described as a medieval financial system.
“In a constitutional democracy, however, the treasury belongs to the Nigerian people, not to the President or his cronies,” he stated.
The former presidential candidate further argued that a government asking citizens to endure economic hardship while allocating such a massive sum to an institution without the capacity to manage it cannot genuinely claim to be promoting fiscal responsibility.
“A government that plans to spend ₦1.08 trillion through a cooperative college cannot claim to be fighting waste or promoting fiscal discipline. It looks less like governance and more like a blueprint to defraud Nigerians,” Atiku declared.
His remarks have added to the growing debate over Nigeria’s 2026 budget, with increasing calls for greater transparency, accountability and closer scrutiny of public spending.
