The African Democratic Congress has criticised the Federal Government over Nigeria’s rising debt profile, accusing President Bola Tinubu’s administration of operating what it described as a “Ponzi economy” driven by continuous borrowing.
The opposition party reacted to the Federal Government’s move to seek an additional $1.25bn loan from the World Bank, weeks after the National Assembly approved fresh external borrowing requests worth billions of dollars.
In a statement issued on Thursday by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC warned that the country’s growing dependence on loans was worsening economic hardship for Nigerians.
According to the party, Nigeria’s total public debt has risen to about N159.28tn amid rising inflation, unemployment, insecurity and cost of living pressures.
Abdullahi said: “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, 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.
“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.”
The party also expressed concern over debt servicing costs, noting that the Federal Government projected spending about $11.6bn, estimated at over N15tn, on debt servicing in 2026 alone.
“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,” the statement added.
The ADC argued that the government had failed to translate the increasing borrowings into visible improvements in citizens’ lives.
“A serious government borrows to build industries, stabilise 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,” the statement read.
The opposition party also criticised the National Assembly, accusing lawmakers of approving borrowing requests without sufficient scrutiny.
“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,” the statement said.
Since assuming office in May 2023, Tinubu’s administration has implemented major economic reforms, including fuel subsidy removal and foreign exchange market unification.
The Federal Government has defended its borrowing plans, insisting that many of the loans are tied to infrastructure, social protection and economic reform programmes aimed at stimulating growth and cushioning the impact of reforms.
However, the ADC warned that continued borrowing without corresponding economic gains could worsen the country’s fiscal challenges.
“Nigeria cannot continue mortgaging the future of unborn generations simply to keep the present administration politically afloat.
“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,” Abdullahi added.
