Debts: Tinubu running a Ponzi economy, says ADC

From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has said it is alarming that the Federal Government is making moves to obtain a fresh loan of $1.25 billion from the World Bank.

The ADC, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, said the government seeking a fresh loan when the country has a high debt  profile of about N159.28 trillion, indicates that the President Bola Tinubu administration is running a ponzi economy.

It accused the  government of  taking new loans to service old debts while Nigerians are burdened by rising food prices, unemployment, insecurity, business closures and worsening inflation.

The opposition party expressed concern that the National Assembly, saddled with oversight of the executive, has been approving endless loan requests for President Tinubu without proper scrutiny.

The ADC is equally concerned that the National Assembly, which should serve as checks on executive excesses, has been reduced to a mere rubber stamp, approving massive borrowing requests with little resistance or serious public scrutiny, even as debt servicing continues to consume an increasingly unsustainable portion of government revenue.

“ADC is deeply alarmed by the Tinubu administration’s latest move to seek another fresh $1.25 billion World Bank loan, coming barely weeks after the National Assembly approved yet another round of external borrowing running into billions of dollars.

“At this point, Nigerians must ask a simple question: if this government keeps borrowing trillions of naira every few months, why are Nigerians getting poorer, and why is life getting harder for the majority?

“Today, Nigeria’s total public debt has risen to about N159.28 trillion, yet food prices continue to rise daily, electricity tariffs are increasing, the naira remains weak, businesses are shutting down, insecurity is spreading, and millions of young Nigerians remain unemployed. Families are cutting down on meals, manufacturers are struggling to survive, and small businesses are collapsing under the weight of inflation and poor economic conditions.

“This is why the ADC says the Tinubu administration is running a Ponzi economy, where new loans are constantly being taken to service old debts and cover fiscal failures, while ordinary Nigerians are left to carry the burden.”

It added that “President Bola Tinubu himself has declared that Nigeria will spend about $11.6 billion, over N15 trillion, on debt servicing alone in 2026. In simple terms, trillions of naira that should have gone into roads, hospitals, schools, electricity, security, agriculture, and job creation will instead go into paying creditors and servicing old loans.

“Even more disturbing is the speed and scale of the borrowing. Since assuming office in May 2023, the Tinubu administration has pursued or secured multiple World Bank facilities and external loans running into several billions of dollars.

“Each time they want to borrow money, this government invents a new acronym. From ARMOR to RESET, HOPE, or SPIN, these are merely different labels for the same pretext to continue borrowing without any recourse to measurable impacts on the lives of Nigerians.

“The government removed fuel subsidy, devalued the Naira, increased electricity tariffs, and imposed painful economic policies on citizens, promising that temporary sacrifice would lead to long-term recovery. Some of the loans are ostensibly obtained to cushion the impacts of these harsh policies. Instead, Nigerians have continued to suffer one of the worst cost-of-living crises in recent history, while the government continues to pile on more debts.

“A serious government borrows to build industries, stabilize power, create jobs, expand exports, improve transportation, and grow the economy in ways that citizens can actually feel. But after all this borrowing, Nigerians cannot point to any measurable improvement in their daily lives that matches the scale of the debt being accumulated in their name.”

Furthermore, the opposition party noted the country cannot continue to mortgage the future of  unborn generations, because it wants “simply to keep the present administration politically afloat.”