…Alleges ₦210bn budget duplication, ₦7.13tr hidden subsidy
Former Vice-President and ADC Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has described the Tinubu administration as one of the most fiscally reckless governments in Nigeria’s democratic history.
In a statement issued yesterday, by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku cited “the shocking revelation of over ₦210 billion in overlapping and duplicated allocations in the 2026 Federal Budget” and Nigeria’s poor performance on nearly 90 percent of globally recognised prosperity indicators.
Atiku said: “Two independent reports have finally stripped away the propaganda surrounding the administration’s so-called economic reforms and revealed a painful truth: Nigeria is not failing because of a lack of resources, but because of a profound failure of leadership”.
He said “For more than three years, Nigerians have been subjected to relentless hardship. They were told that fuel subsidy removal, exchange rate unification, higher taxes and rising tariffs were bitter pills that would eventually restore economic stability. Yet today, the same government cannot explain how more than ₦210 billion found its way into duplicated and overlapping budget provisions. When a government asks its people to sacrifice, it must first demonstrate discipline”.
The former Vice-President also alleged subsidy deception, saying “Nigerians were told in 2023 that subsidy was gone and were compelled to endure unprecedented hardship. Yet, NNPC Ltd.’s own audited 2024 financial statements now reveal that a staggering ₦7.13 trillion was still expended on what it calls ‘Energy Security Expenses’, a category the company itself identifies as petrol subsidy. This means Nigerians were never told the whole truth. The subsidy was not eliminated; it was merely repackaged, renamed and quietly charged against the Federation”.
Atiku added that “The national budget is the single most important economic policy document of any government. When that document itself becomes contaminated by duplication and overlapping allocations, confidence in the entire machinery of government is undermined”, noting that families are skipping meals, businesses shutting down and youth unemployment rising, while the government continues aggressive borrowing despite stronger oil prices.
