The 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has raised strong concerns over reports that the Federal Government is seeking to borrow about ₦20 trillion to fund the 2026 national budget, describing the move as reckless, alarming, and dangerous to Nigeria’s economic future.
In a statement personally signed on Friday, Obi said the development was particularly disturbing because the nation is already staggering under a debt burden so heavy that nearly half of all national revenue is projected to go into servicing debt alone.
According to him, the borrowing requirement has surged by more than 72%, even as the economy continues to suffer from high unemployment, widespread hardship, and worsening insecurity.
Obi questioned the government’s claims of increased revenue in 2025, asking Nigerians to demand accountability instead of accepting what he described as contradictory fiscal narratives.
“At a time when Nigerians are struggling under unprecedented hardship, insecurity, and unemployment, we must ask the most important and logical questions: Where is the revenue from 2025?” he said.
The former Anambra governor faulted the government’s decision to discuss trillions of naira in new borrowing for 2026 when the 2024 budget is still being implemented, and the 2025 budget, according to him, appears “untouched and unimplemented.”
“This suggests, very clearly, that the 2025 budget is still untouched. So, where are all the revenues that accrued in 2025, even when we were told that we had surpassed the revenue targets since August?” he queried.
Obi warned that Nigeria cannot continue what he called “fiscal rascality” through incessant and unexplained loans that do not go into productive sectors capable of stimulating economic growth.
“We cannot keep mortgaging the future of our children through thoughtless borrowing. We cannot continue this way,” he cautioned.
Reiterating his long-standing economic argument, Obi maintained that no nation can borrow its way into prosperity, insisting that development can only happen when countries produce, export, and create real value.
“Nations do not develop by consuming more than they produce. They develop by producing, exporting, and creating value while building strong institutions that ensure accountability and efficient use of public funds,” he stressed.
Obi said the Federal Government cannot continue to claim rising revenues while also borrowing at what he described as “ridiculous historic levels.”
“Governance must be built on transparency, not propaganda,” he said.
“We cannot build a new Nigeria on the foundation of misleading figures, rising debts, shrinking production, and continuous hardship.”
He concluded by urging Nigerians to demand responsible fiscal management and a shift toward productive economic policies.
“Our nation must move forward. A New Nigeria is POssible.”
