Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu of concealing details of his proposed external borrowing of $20.52 billion and €1.045 billion, warning that the loans could be diverted to serve political interests.
Mr Tinubu had requested Senate approval for external borrowing of $20.52 billion and €1.045 billion under the government’s proposed financing plan.
Mr Atiku, the African Democratic Congress presidential candidate, said the President’s request had vindicated his October 12 warning that the administration was planning to borrow up to $20 billion in connection with the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.
He also questioned the absence of project-by-project details, including costs, locations and contractors, warning that Nigerians could be saddled with huge debts without knowing how the funds would be spent.
Mr Atiku stated this in a statement issued by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council.
“On October 12, I warned Nigerians that President Tinubu was reportedly preparing to borrow up to $20 billion in connection with the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway. I asked him to confirm or deny the plan and publish the accounts. He did neither.
“Today, he has asked the Senate to approve $20.52 billion and €1.045 billion in external loans. My warning has been vindicated,” he said.
The former vice president said the President had listed broad sectors expected to benefit from the borrowing but had failed to provide sufficient details for public scrutiny.
“Nigerians have not been given clear project details, costs, locations or contractors to scrutinise,” he said.
Mr Atiku expressed concern over the reported rerouting of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway inland, asking whether the project could become a channel for directing borrowed funds to political campaigners and favoured contractors.
“Nigerians have every right to ask whether it is becoming a pipeline for borrowed money to reach Tinubu’s campaigners and favoured contractors,” he said.
He further questioned the timing of the proposed borrowing, arguing that the administration should not commit the country to additional debt without disclosing the projects and their costs.
“Is this a development plan for Nigerians or a campaign financing scheme dressed up as infrastructure?” he asked.
Mr Atiku vowed to scrutinise and investigate loans obtained during the final year of Tinubu’s administration if elected president, saying any borrowing found to have violated constitutional or statutory requirements would be challenged through lawful means.
“I put local and international lenders on notice: any loan granted to this winding down administration must meet all constitutional, statutory and due process requirements,” he said.
He urged the National Assembly not to approve the proposed loans until the government published details of the projects, contracts, costs, contractors, loan terms and repayment obligations.
“The National Assembly must not approve a single dollar until the President publishes every project, contract, cost, contractor, loan term and repayment obligation. No public money should be borrowed in the dark, and no lawmaker should sign a blank cheque against Nigeria’s future,” he said.
Mr Atiku also called on lawmakers to make the loan proposal and its supporting documents public and subject them to rigorous scrutiny before taking a decision.
He argued that Nigerians already grappling with the rising cost of living should not be made to bear additional debt without knowing how the money would be spent and who would benefit.
“The woman fighting to keep her business alive and the worker spending their income just to feed deserve to know where the money is going, who will benefit and who will pay,” he said.
He added that Nigerians would have an opportunity to reject the administration at the ballot box if they believed it was borrowing against the country’s future while ignoring the sacrifices of citizens.