The 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has strongly criticised the Federal Government’s plan to borrow N17.89 trillion in 2026 to finance the budget deficit, describing the move as “fiscal rascality.”
Obi made his position known in a post on his X handle on Friday, warning that Nigeria could not continue to “mortgage the future” of its youthful population through what he termed reckless and poorly thought-out borrowing.
The Federal Government had earlier disclosed plans to raise N17.89tn in loans in 2026 to cover a widening budget deficit, as projected revenues fall significantly short of expenditure. The plan is contained in the 2026 budget framework obtained from the Budget Office of the Federation.
According to the document, the proposed borrowing is driven by a larger fiscal gap and a weaker revenue outlook, despite a slight reduction in projected overall spending compared to the current year. The framework estimates the 2026 fiscal deficit at N20.12tn, an increase from the N14.10tn approved for the 2025 budget.
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Reacting to the proposal, Obi questioned the rationale behind fresh borrowing when the 2024 budget was still being implemented and clarity on the 2025 budget remained lacking.
He said, “Today, Nigerians woke up again to the troubling news that the Federal Government is planning to borrow about N20tn in new loans to finance the 2026 budget. This is at a time when debt servicing alone is projected to gulp nearly half of our national revenue, and when our borrowing requirement has surged by over 72 per cent.”
Obi further expressed concern over the timing of the plan, noting, “At a time when Nigerians are struggling under unprecedented hardship, insecurity, and unemployment, we must ask the most important and logical questions: Where is the revenue from 2025?
“How can we be discussing trillions in new borrowing for 2026 when we are still implementing the 2024 budget? One is genuinely worried. This suggests, very clearly, that the 2025 budget is still untouched and unimplemented.”
The former Anambra State governor also queried the government’s claims on revenue performance.
“So, where are all the revenues that accrued in 2025, even when we were told that we had surpassed revenue targets since August?” he asked.
Calling for an end to what he described as reckless fiscal practices, Obi said, “It is time for us to stop this fiscal rascality, especially with uncontrolled and unexplained borrowing that is not being invested in the productive sectors of our nation but instead ends up in consumption.”
He maintained that Nigeria could not achieve development through excessive borrowing, stressing, “Nations do not develop by consuming more than they produce. They develop by producing, exporting, and creating value, while building strong institutions that ensure accountability and efficient use of public funds.”
Obi also cautioned against what he described as conflicting narratives on revenue growth, adding, “We cannot tell Nigerians that revenue is increasing while simultaneously increasing borrowing to ridiculous historic levels. Governance must be built on transparency, not propaganda.”
Concluding his remarks, Obi warned that the country’s future could not be built on unsustainable fiscal practices, saying, “We cannot build a new Nigeria on the foundation of misleading figures, rising debts, shrinking production, and continuous hardship. Our nation must move forward.”