Debt accumulation: Tinubu running ponzi economy, says ADC

By Lateef Ibrahim Abuja

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused the President Bola Tinubu administration of running a “Ponzi economy” following the Federal Government’s move to seek another fresh $1.25 billion World Bank loan, despite Nigeria’s rising debt profile of about N159.28 trillion.

The party made the accusation in a row on Thursday by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi in Abuja.

The ADC said the government was taking new loans to service old debts, while Nigerians continue to suffer rising food prices, unemployment, insecurity, business closures, and worsening inflation.

The statement by Abdullahi reads, “The African Democratic Congress (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 is noteworthy 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”, it said.

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.

Nigeria, the coalition party maintained, cannot continue mortgaging the future of unborn generations simply to keep the present administration politically afloat.

The ADC added, “At some point, somebody will pay for all this borrowing, and sadly, ordinary Nigerians are already paying through hunger, inflation, unemployment, business closures, and a collapsing standard of living.

“What Nigeria needs right now is the ADC’s leadership, which is focused on production, security, industrialization, agriculture, stable electricity, support for local businesses, and real job creation”, the ADC statement concluded.