Nigeria’s former Vice-President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has criticised President Bola Tinubu’s economic policies, questioning why the government continues to borrow heavily despite what he says is a substantial increase in oil revenue.
In a statement issued through his spokesperson, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said the federal government had raised about ₦5 trillion from the domestic bond market during the first half of 2026, nearly 80% of the amount borrowed during the same period in 2025.
He argued that such borrowing was difficult to justify when oil prices had remained well above the benchmark used in Nigeria’s 2026 budget.
“This naturally raises two unavoidable questions. First, why is a government enjoying such an extraordinary oil windfall borrowing at almost twice last year’s pace as though the nation were in financial distress? Second, where is the money?” Atiku asked.
According to Atiku, the 2026 budget was based on an oil price of $64.84 per barrel, while Brent crude averaged about $92 per barrel between March and mid-July. He estimated that the price difference generated an additional ₦7.98 trillion in oil revenue over the period.
He said previous administrations had clear mechanisms for managing excess oil earnings through the Sovereign Wealth Fund and other fiscal buffers, adding that Nigerians deserved greater transparency over how the additional revenue was being used.
“Nigerians deserve answers. They deserve accountability. Above all, they deserve a government that manages national wealth in the public interest, not one that presides over unprecedented opacity while asking future generations to repay debts incurred in the midst of plenty,” he said.
Atiku also criticised the Tinubu administration’s approach to electricity reform, saying it had only recently embraced a decentralised power generation policy that he claimed to have proposed more than 20 years ago.
Referring to recent comments by the Minister of Power, he said the government had taken too long to recognise that Nigeria could no longer rely solely on large, centralised power plants.
“It should not take a government three years in office to discover what was obvious more than two decades ago,” Atiku said.
He also criticised the increase in electricity tariffs, arguing that reforms should have come before higher charges for consumers.
“A government that thinks before it acts would have fixed the system before asking citizens to pay more. Unfortunately, this administration has done the exact opposite, raising tariffs first and only now beginning to think about the reforms required to justify those increases,” he said.
Recalling his time as vice-president under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Atiku said he had consistently advocated a diversified energy mix, including gas, hydroelectric and solar power, rather than relying mainly on centralised generation.
“Nigeria does not suffer from a shortage of ideas. It suffers from a shortage of leaders willing to act on the right ideas at the right time,” he added.
The presidency had not publicly responded to Atiku’s remarks at the time of publication.
