Former VP Atiku Abubakar and President Bola Tinubu
Former Vice President of Nigeria and Presidential Candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has described the latest revelation that the Federal Government exceeded its 2024 borrowing limit by ₦4.79 trillion, pushing fresh borrowing to ₦12.62 trillion, as further proof that the Tinubu administration has completely lost control of the nation’s finances.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said Nigerians were promised that the painful removal of fuel subsidy, repeated tax hikes and other harsh economic measures would reduce borrowing and restore fiscal stability. Instead, the country is witnessing the exact opposite: endless borrowing, ballooning debt and unprecedented waste.
The former vice president cited figures from the Budget Office indicating that the Federal Government borrowed 61.2 percent above the limit approved by the National Assembly. He also expressed concern over an additional ₦3.19 trillion obtained as “budget support,” despite the absence of such a provision in the approved budget, questioning the lack of transparency regarding the source of the funds.
He argued that the latest borrowing figures were part of what he described as a broader trend of poor fiscal management under the current administration, alleging that issues such as duplicated budgetary allocations, opaque spending and excessive borrowing had become recurring features of government finances.
According to him, the administration had previously faced criticism over the creation of agencies, alleged duplication of budget items, heavy allocations under the Service Wide Vote and what he called excessive spending on luxury vehicles, while critical sectors continued to struggle for funding.
Atiku questioned the purpose of the increasing debt profile, insisting that there was little evidence the borrowed funds were translating into meaningful improvements in education, healthcare, security or infrastructure.
“Certainly not education, where children continue to learn under deplorable conditions.
“Certainly not healthcare, where hospitals remain underfunded.
“Certainly not security, where innocent Nigerians are massacred while security agencies complain of inadequate funding.
“Certainly not infrastructure, because the roads remain death traps and electricity has become an expensive luxury.”
He further stated that ordinary Nigerians were being left with the burden of repaying debts without seeing corresponding benefits in public services or economic development.
The ADC presidential candidate also pointed to reports that the Federal Government had recorded an estimated ₦7.98 trillion oil revenue windfall from higher crude oil prices, arguing that such earnings should have reduced the need for additional borrowing rather than increase it.
“A government earning windfalls while borrowing recklessly is not suffering from lack of revenue; it is suffering from lack of discipline.”
He also referenced the Budget Office report, which showed that debt servicing reached ₦12.36 trillion, exceeding the budgeted figure by more than 52 percent, warning that Nigeria risked becoming trapped in a cycle where new loans were primarily used to repay existing debts.
“This is not economic reform. It is fiscal vandalism.”
The former vice president maintained that no responsible government should continue to accumulate debt while, in his view, allowing wasteful spending, budget duplication and weak financial accountability to persist.
He challenged the government to explain how public funds were being utilized, arguing that increased revenues, higher taxes and the removal of fuel subsidy had all coincided with even higher levels of borrowing.
“This is not governance. It is a debt addiction.”
Atiku said the ADC remained committed to promoting prudent financial management, greater transparency, elimination of waste and investment in productive sectors instead of relying on continuous borrowing to finance government activities.
He added that Nigerians should not be left paying current taxes to service old debts while future generations inherit what he described as an unsustainable debt burden.
