Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has expressed deep concern over Nigeria’s escalating debt, following a World Bank report ranking the country as the third most indebted nation to the International Development Association (IDA).
Taking to his official X Handle, Atiku criticized the Tinubu administration’s borrowing policies, describing the government’s approach as a “bone-crushing” burden on Nigerians.
His remarks come amid reports that the federal government has submitted a proposal to the National Assembly seeking to borrow an additional N1.7 trillion through Eurobonds to address a shortfall in the 2024 budget.
Atiku questioned the rationale behind the new loan proposal, which is benchmarked at an exchange rate of N800 to $1, despite the Central Bank of Nigeria’s current exchange rate standing at over N1,600 to $1. He described this as a troubling sign of fiscal irresponsibility, further exacerbating Nigeria’s economic woes.
Atiku alleged that corruption, rather than developmental needs, is driving the government’s appetite for loans, referencing a report by BudgIT that described the 2024 budget as being riddled with excessive allocations, or “pork.”
The statement partly reads, “The recent report released by the World Bank, showing Nigeria as the third most indebted country to the International Development Association (IDA), is very concerning.
“This report is coming just when the government has already sent a proposal to the National Assembly signalling an intention to borrow an additional N1.7tn being shortfall in the 2024 budget
‘What makes this particular loan proposal even more concerning is that it is benchmarked at the exchange rate of 1 USD to N800, whereas the current exchange rate from the Central Bank of Nigeria stands at over N1,600 to 1 USD.
“Nigeria is sinking further into debt, and the National Assembly has become an accomplice once more. In July this year, Tinubu boasted that the @FIRSNigeria and @CustomsNG under his watch had collected all-time high revenues to finance the Budget. Why are they still borrowing? There is something that they are not telling Nigerians, even as they are being crushed by a combination of their failed trial-and-error policies and loan rackets.
“These @officialABAT’s loans are bone-crushing to Nigerians and bringing insufferable pressure on the economy, especially when they are not properly negotiated and utilized.
“It is concerning that the voracious appetite for these humongous loans is powered by corruption and not for infrastructure and development needs. A report by Budgit, a budget watchdog, has disclosed that the 2024 Budget is a mess because of the level of pork associated with it.
“I feel a sense of personal agony seeing that just a few years after the administration of President Obasanjo took our country out of foreign indebtedness, we are today back at the top spot in the same conundrum
“It is time to apply more caution and arithmetic to the loan frenzy.”
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