Former Governor of Anambra State and Labour Party presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Mr. Peter Obi, has sharply criticised the Federal Government over what he described as a growing culture of financial recklessness, following the reported approval of a massive debt write-off for the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC).
In a statement posted on his verified X (formerly Twitter) handle on January 7, Obi expressed alarm over reports that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu approved the write-off of ₦5.57 trillion and $1.42 billion—amounting to nearly ₦8 trillion—in debts owed by NNPC, an organisation that recently declared profits and claimed to have reformed its operations.
“Financial recklessness is increasingly becoming normalized in our country,” Obi said, noting that the debt forgiveness came despite ongoing audit concerns surrounding the national oil company.
He recalled that NNPC is currently facing serious scrutiny over its alleged failure to account for ₦210 trillion, an amount he said far exceeds Nigeria’s combined federal budgets from 2023 to 2026. Obi broke down the figures, stating that the federal budgets stood at approximately ₦21.83 trillion in 2023, ₦43.56 trillion in 2024, ₦54.99 trillion in 2025, and an estimated ₦58.18 trillion in 2026—totalling about ₦178.56 trillion over four years.
“Nigerians are still waiting for the outcome of the National Assembly investigation into the missing trillions,” he said, adding that the same company remains under investigation for spending trillions of naira on refineries that are yet to function effectively.
Obi expressed concern that the President, who also oversees the petroleum sector, approved the debt write-off at a time when Nigerians are grappling with severe economic hardship following the removal of fuel and electricity subsidies.
“Nigerians, already enduring severe hardships due to the removal of petroleum and electricity subsidies—with no tangible improvements in their lives—are now confronted with this unexplained debt forgiveness,” he stated.
According to Obi, the nearly ₦8 trillion write-off would ultimately be replaced by revenue the government is now seeking through what he described as unfair taxation of citizens.
He stressed the need for transparency, insisting that the government must clearly justify the decision given the development impact such funds could have if properly deployed.
“This almost ₦8 trillion write-off could have generated the revenue the government now seeks through these unfair taxes,” Obi said, noting that the amount exceeds the combined federal budget allocations for education, health, and agriculture in 2025, which stand at ₦7.1 trillion.
He argued that the funds could have been used to finance critical sectors, lift millions of Nigerians out of poverty, and significantly reduce the more than 130 million people currently living below the poverty line.
Obi further observed that the write-off amount is nearly twice the 2025 federal security budget of ₦4.9 trillion, at a time when insecurity continues to devastate communities across the country.
“Such resources could empower 8 million youths—10 per cent of the 80 million unemployed—creating about 1,000 jobs in each of the 8,809 wards in Nigeria,” he said.
Concluding, Obi said the President owes Nigerians clear explanations, insisting that citizens deserve honesty, fiscal discipline, and governance that prioritises public interest over “mismanaged corporations or political elites.”
“This betrayal of the people must be stopped,” he declared.
