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From Idu Jude, Abuja
The presidential candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP), Architect Dr Peter Agada, has asked the National Assembly to delay President Tinubu’s request for a supplementary foreign loan, as the money may be spent on the 2027 presidential election campaign.
Agada, in a press statement on Wednesday, said he was privileged to read the letter President Bola Tinubu sent to Senate President Godswill Akpabio on Tuesday, seeking National Assembly approval for a supplementary external borrowing plan of $20.52 billion and €1.045 billion for 2026–2027.
Dr Agada, who bemoaned the huge foreign debt hanging over Nigeria, highlighted that the country’s total public debt is ₦166.79 trillion as of June 2026. “Now we want to add another $21.7 billion – less than 110 days to the 2027 general election.
“As an Architect, PhD, Acoustic Expert with Military C4ISR and 20 years of policy development experience, I have 4 technical questions for the government and the National Assembly:”
Agada, in more detail, said the right time to borrow is when one has shown that one can manage what one has already borrowed.
“For 3 years now, the Federal Government has been unable to fully finance its budget. Capital budget performance is below 40%. Contractors are being owed across the country. Yet we are borrowing more.
“In Architecture, you don’t borrow to build a new house when you have not roofed the old one. You complete old projects first.
“We removed fuel subsidy. We floated the Naira. Government revenue has tripled. Why are we still borrowing at the same rate as when subsidy existed? Where did the subsidy savings go? This is the question Emir Sanusi and other leaders have been asking.”
Meanwhile, Agada has expressed fear that, with less than 110 days to the general election, the president seeks $20.5B to fund projects across 36 states and the FCT. History shows every incumbent uses such projects to campaign.
“If you approve $20.5B today, can you complete any power, transportation, health, or education project in 100 days before the election? No. It is impossible.
“So what will this money actually do? Pay contractors who are party financiers? Fund election logistics?”
To the National Assembly, he advised, “If you must approve this loan, insert a clear clause: No disbursement of this $20.5B from January 2027 to May 2027 – which is the election period. The money should come after the election, to whoever wins, not before the election to the incumbent. That is how you prove it is not political.”
The YPP presidential candidate regrets the ambiguities of borrowing while being the richest in Africa. “We tell Nigerians and investors that we have money, subsidy removed, revenue increased; the World Bank applauds our reforms. But in the same week, we go to the World Bank and foreign lenders to borrow $20.5B.”
It sends a terrible message to investors: Nigeria has no money.
“What Nigeria needs is not fresh borrowing. What Nigeria needs is non-FAAC funding from savings inside government itself.”
He said lean governance means cutting the cost of governance at the federal level by 40%. “It also collapses 250 wasteful and duplicating agencies into 40 productive ones. It stops duplicate fleets, duplicate foreign trips, and duplicate offices. As an Acoustic Expert, I know how noise and waste reduce productivity. Savings: Over ₦4 trillion annually. This goes directly to 8,809 Wards via 347# USSD – not through FAAC.”
He said using EPC contracting reform would checkmate publication, noting that today’s government builds 1km of road for ₦2 billion because of five layers of middlemen. “As an Architect with 20 years in policy and Military C4ISR infrastructure, I will introduce Engineering, Procurement and Construction [EPC] direct contracting reforms. Government contracts directly with OEMs and certified professionals, no middlemen. Savings: 35% on every capital project. Savings: Over ₦6 trillion annually. This goes to Wards.”
He said it is possible for Nigeria to recover over ₦3 trillion annually by auditing all waivers, tax incentives and Ways and Means, stopping payment for ghost projects, and recovering the savings from subsidy removal that disappeared into overheads.
“I can tell you that Nigeria can save over ₦13 trillion yearly – without touching FAAC, without borrowing $20.5B, without new tax.
“With ₦13 trillion from lean governance, you don’t need to borrow $20.5B to build infrastructure from Abuja. That Abuja-contractor model failed for 26 years. Money finishes in Abuja; projects never reach the ward.
“This is the real question Nigerians are asking.
“For 3 years, the FG has not funded the budget 100%. Debt service is already ₦15.81 trillion. The fiscal deficit is ₦31.46 trillion.
“Yet we are adding $20.5B. Who will pay? My generation will pay, not those approving it today.
“An Architect does not add load to a collapsed pillar. He first strengthens the pillar.”
Consequently, Agada has called on the APC government to be bold enough to publish all projects funded by the previous $2.347 billion borrowed in October 2025. “Where are they? Show us the office, show us the site.
“Publish an audited report of all infrastructure projects since 2023. Which are completed? Which are abandoned?
“Show us your office: Where is the detailed project compendium for this $20.5B? Not just a sector list: power, health, agriculture, water. Which specific road in which Ward? Which specific hospital in which Ward?”
