Obi to Tinubu: Your Administration Is Building Unsustainable Debt With No Tangible Results

Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in 2023, has charged that President Bola Tinubu has been borrowing excessively without producing any infrastructure to support it.
Obi expressed grave concerns about Nigeria’s growing debt load under President Tinubu’s leadership, stating that this trend may jeopardize the prospects of future generations and deteriorate the quality of life for millions of Nigerians.
In a post on Tuesday through his 𝕏 account, the former governor of Anambra State reportedly referred to the Nigerian Senate’s recent approval of an additional $21 billion, €2.2 billion, and ¥15 billion in external borrowing for the fiscal cycle of 2025–2026, in addition to the issuance of ₦750.98 billion in domestic bonds and a €65 million grant.

Nigeria’s overall debt, according to the most recent data, is currently around ₦187 trillion, and there are worries that it could surpass ₦200 trillion by the end of 2025.

For the fiscal year 2025–2026, the Nigerian Senate authorized an additional $21 billion, €2.2 billion, and ¥15 billion in external borrowing on July 22, 2025. It also authorized a gift of €65 million and the issuing of domestic bonds worth N750.98 billion. Our overall debt is currently around N187 trillion, with the sanctioned loans amounting to approximately N37.2 trillion added to the approximately N149.39 trillion public debt as of the first quarter of 2025. There are worries that this amount could surpass N200 trillion by the end of 2025.

The government has borrowed the equivalent of almost 70% of our prior GDP, which was approximately N269.2 trillion (almost $180 billion) prior to rebasing. With the approved loans, the government would have borrowed almost 50.16 percent of the new GDP, the greatest debt-to-GDP ratio in our country’s history, even after the rebasing improved our GDP to nearly N372.8 trillion (roughly $243. 7 billion).

Even though the annual increase is roughly N27.72 trillion, and the quarterly increase is roughly N4.72 trillion, we are building up extremely high amounts of unmanageable debt with little to show for it in vital sectors like healthcare, education, electricity production, property and life security, and lifting people out of poverty.

In every significant measure of human advancement, we continue to fall short. Healthcare is still out of reach for millions of Nigerians, especially the impoverished, while education is underfunded and standards are steadily declining. Over 10,217 people were slain and 672 villages were looted between May 29th, 2023, and May 29th, 2025, indicating a decline in life and property security despite a considerable increase in security spending from N2.98 trillion in 2023 to N4.91 trillion in 2025. The nation’s infrastructure is still in poor condition; over 135,000 km of our 195,000 km of roads are still unpaved, mostly impassable, and unusable. Nearly every area of the economy is experiencing the same dire circumstances, with the power industry serving more than 200 million Nigerians with less than 5,000 MW of electricity.

Today, more than two years after the current government took office and with all the massive borrowing, we continue to face depressing news of growing poverty, with approximately 133 million (63%) Nigerians classified as multidimensionally poor, rising unemployment, and tragic reports like 652 children dying as the malnutrition crisis in Northern Nigeria worsens.

A growing malnutrition problem in Northern Nigeria has been brought to light by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), better known as Doctors Without Borders, with Katsina State emerging as one of the most severely affected regions.

“Despite the vast wealth of this nation, no one should go to bed hungry. Nonetheless, he stated that the bulk of our countrymen are now living in escalating multifaceted poverty due to a prolonged lack of leadership.

Peter Obi, however, concurred that borrowing might not be entirely harmful if it were directed toward high-impact, profitable projects with clear and quantifiable results. The administration of President Bola Tinubu has not demonstrated any signs of fiscal responsibility, nor has it provided an explanation for the massive borrowings.

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In his plea for economic reform, he urged the government to prioritize investments in human capital, stop income leaks, and reduce unnecessary spending.

As long as it is sustainable and linked to profitable ventures with quantifiable results, borrowing is not always a negative thing. Unfortunately, this present borrowing trend is merely mortgaging our children’s futures without any responsibility, transparency, or transformative impact. The administration ought to take into account the long-term effects of its unsustainable borrowings and demonstrate at least a passing concern for the future of Nigeria’s youth and unborn children.

“We need to go back to a culture of economic management that is disciplined and prudent, reducing the cost of governance, preventing leaks, investing in human capital, and creating a productive economy.” As poverty increases and public confidence declines, Nigeria cannot keep taking on debt carelessly.

“We must put an end to this financial irresponsibility. For development and growth to be sustainable and inclusive, we need to create a New Nigeria where people are at the center of development, leadership is accountable, and every kobo borrowed or spent has a quantifiable impact.

He said, “A new Nigeria is possible.”