Former Vice President and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, has expressed deep concern over reports that the Senate approved President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s request for a fresh $6 billion external loan within a record time, reportedly less than four hours after its presentation.
Atiku, in a statement on Tuesday by his spokesperson, Phrank
Shaibu, described the development as not just troubling but alarming.
This comes as the Senate on Tuesday speedily approved
President $6 billion combined external loan request.
Reacting, Atiku noted that a decision of such profound
national consequence, one that will further burden an already strained economy
and mortgage the future of generations yet unborn, cannot be treated with such
reckless urgency.
“What Nigerians have witnessed is not legislative diligence,
but a disturbing erosion of oversight responsibility,” he said.
He stressed that the National Assembly is not designed to
function as a mere rubber stamp but as a constitutional safeguard meant to
interrogate, scrutinize, and protect the interests of the Nigerian people.
The Senate, which ought to serve as a constitutional
safeguard, has instead reduced itself to a conveyor belt, processing requests
of grave national consequence without due diligence. Borrowing decisions that
will bind generations yet unborn cannot, and must not, be treated with this
level of casual urgency.
“Where was the debate? Where was the rigorous analysis?
Where was the accountability?” Atiku queried.
He warned that approving a multi-billion-dollar borrowing
request in record time, without visible scrutiny, raises serious questions
about due process and the commitment of the legislature to its constitutional
duty.
While these objectives may appear routine on the surface,
Atiku warned that they expose deeper structural weaknesses in the nation’s
fiscal management.
“Resorting to fresh borrowing to service existing debts,
plug budget gaps, and meet routine obligations is not a strategy—it is a
dangerous cycle. It reflects a troubling absence of fiscal discipline, clear
prioritization, and sustainable economic planning,” he said.
He further anchored his concerns on emerging fiscal
indicators, noting that between January and February 2026, the World Bank
reported that Nigeria’s exposure to the International Development Association
(IDA) had risen to $18.7 billion—placing the country among the largest
recipients of concessional loans globally.
“In March 2026 alone, the President is requesting an
additional $6 billion external loan, even as the Debt Management Office
continues aggressive domestic borrowing through high-volume bond auctions, as
evidenced by the March 2026 FGN Bond Offer Circular, largely to finance
immediate government obligations and service existing debt,” he added.
According to Atiku, this pattern reflects an unsustainable
borrowing trajectory that places the country on a dangerous fiscal path.
The former vice president further questioned whether the
development signals a deliberate attempt to mortgage the future of the country.
“Because that is what it suggests,” he added.
What does a government that appears to be preparing for
electoral rejection in 2027 intend to do with an additional $6 billion in
borrowed funds—on top of the mounting obligations it has already accumulated in
just the first quarter of 2026?
Atiku emphasized that at a time when Nigeria’s debt profile
continues to rise and debt servicing consumes a significant portion of national
revenue, prudence—not haste—should guide fiscal decisions.
“Borrowing is not inherently wrong, but reckless borrowing,
enabled by legislative complacency, is dangerous,” he said.
He added that the speed of the approval suggests a troubling
sense of desperation—one that does not inspire confidence in the long-term
economic direction of the country.
“Nigeria is not a private enterprise to be leveraged at
will. The future of our nation cannot be signed away in a matter of hours,” he
stated.
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