Tinubu Administration Addresses Reports Of N8 Trillion Off-Budget Expenditure

The Federal Government under Bola Ahmed Tinubu has dismissed allegations that it spent more than ₦8 trillion, estimated at about two per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), outside the approved national budget.

The government, in a statement issued on Sunday by the Federal Ministry of Finance, described the claims as incorrect and capable of misleading Nigerians about the management of public finances.

The statement was signed by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, following public comments linked to observations attributed to the International Monetary Fund’s representative in Nigeria and the Fund’s 2026 Article IV Consultation Report.

The government insisted it does not run a “shadow budget” or spend public funds outside constitutional and statutory financial procedures.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the Federal Government does not run a ‘shadow budget’ nor do we spend public funds outside the constitutional and statutory framework laid down for public finance,” the statement read.

The government referred to Sections 80 to 83 and 162 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which govern the withdrawal and spending of public funds.

It said that Federal Government spending was undertaken through Appropriation Acts, Supplementary Appropriation Acts and other statutory authorities approved by the National Assembly.

The ministry also stated that multi-year capital projects, which may extend over several budget cycles, were implemented in accordance with existing laws and approved capital rollover provisions, where applicable.

“These are recognised features of public financial management and should not be seen as off-budget spending,” the government said.

It challenged those who alleged that trillions of naira were secretly spent to name specific projects allegedly executed without appropriation or legal authority.

It is wrong to say that trillions of naira have been secretly spent outside of legislative approval.

“Such charges must identify the projects undertaken without appropriation or authority of law and must be supported by credible evidence.

“To be meaningful, such monumental assertions must be backed by facts that can be verified and not by speculation,” the ministry said.

When analysing Nigeria’s public finances, the government said it was important to distinguish between appropriation, expenditure authorisation, financing and fiscal reporting.

The ministry said the country’s public finance framework comprises statutory transfers, first-line charges and intervention mechanisms established by Acts of the National Assembly.

These are statutory allocations and contributions to development commissions and other agencies established by law and the cost of collection and administration retained by designated revenue-generating agencies.

The government also listed capital expenditure approved in separate budgets for some agencies and the Federal Capital Territory, special interventions for security, infrastructure and disaster response, debt service obligations and other statutory transfers.

“These expenditures are neither clandestine nor unlawful. “They are established by law, reported in various fiscal documents and are subject to relevant oversight, audit and accountability mechanisms,” the ministry said.

It explained that some expenditures might be treated differently for reporting purposes than they are presented in the annual Appropriation Act, especially under international statistical and reporting standards adopted by the government.

“Such differences in classification should not be misrepresented as evidence of unlawful expenditure,” it added.

The Federal Government also dismissed suggestions the disputed amount amounted to an increase in the country’s budget deficit.

Fiscal deficit is the relationship between total government revenue and total expenditure, the ministry said.

It argued that the financing mechanism employed for a capital project did not necessarily increase the fiscal deficit.

“The fiscal deficit is not increased, by itself, by the fact that a capital project is financed by means of annual appropriations, supplementary appropriations, statutory transfers, approved intervention mechanisms or other lawful financing arrangements,” the government stated.

The ministry said the IMF’s observation was mainly on the comprehensiveness, timing and presentation of fiscal reports, not on the legality of government expenditure.

Like several other countries, Nigeria was working to strengthen the alignment of its budget presentation with international fiscal reporting standards, it added.

The government recalled that President Bola Tinubu had formally requested the National Assembly to stop the practice of running multiple and overlapping budgets.

Tinubu made the request during the presentation of the 2026 Appropriation Bill to a joint session of the National Assembly on December 19, 2025, the ministry said.

It said the President advocated a single, cohesive budget framework.

The Federal Government re-iterated its commitment to prudent fiscal management, transparency and accountability.

It said recent reforms had improved public financial management through better budget assumptions, revenue administration, digitalisation of financial processes and treasury management.

The ministry said the reforms had gained recognition from the IMF, other multilateral institutions, international credit rating agencies, media organisations and investors.

“Public debate is welcome and essential in a democratic society. But it must be predicated on facts and an accurate understanding of Nigeria’s constitutional and fiscal framework,” the statement added.

“Misrepresenting technical observations as evidence of unlawful expenditure neither contributes to informed public discourse nor enhances democratic accountability.”