The Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Atiku Abubakar, has warned the Senate against approving President Bola Tinubu’s request for another $7.7 billion foreign loan, equivalent to approximately N10.79 trillion, insisting that Nigerians should not be burdened with more debt without knowing how the money will be spent.
Atiku, in a statement issued on Wednesday by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, questioned why the President was seeking another loan barely days after submitting an earlier external borrowing proposal to the National Assembly.
He said the repeated borrowing requests should not be treated as routine government business, warning that Nigerians would eventually bear the cost of the loans.
Questioning the purpose of the latest request, Atiku demanded details of the projects to be financed, their individual costs, interest rates and repayment conditions.
He said: “Nigerians should not be asked to accept a loan before they know what it will cost the country.”
The Presidential candidate urged the Senate to demand a full list of projects, funding allocations, loan terms and a credible repayment plan before considering the request.
He also questioned the benefits of the administration’s previous borrowings, asking: “What is Tinubu using his loans to finance specifically?”
Atiku further accused the Tinubu administration of worsening the cost-of-living crisis despite its borrowing activities and called on international lenders to suspend fresh loans to the government until it provides transparent terms and evidence of how previous borrowings have benefited Nigerians.
He proposed a production-based petroleum subsidy as an alternative approach to addressing the country’s economic difficulties, insisting that the National Assembly must hold the executive accountable before approving another loan.