Economy
ADC Laments Tinubu’s “Dangerous Obsession With Borrowing”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The new major opposition political party in Nigeria, the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has accused the administration of President Bola Tinubu of “fiscal vandalism” because of its “dangerous obsession with borrowing.”
The group, in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr Bolaji Abdullahi, said the National Assembly is also not helping to checkmate the President on this borrowing spree.
The party, while reacting to the approval of the $21 billion foreign loan request of Mr Tinubu a few days ago, said the country’s public debt could go beyond N200 trillion before the end of 2025, with nothing to show for it, demanding a full disclosure of all loan agreements signed over the past 10 years, insisting that Nigerians have a right to know the terms, interest rates, payment timelines, and final recipients of the loans.
“The ADC is deeply concerned by the Tinubu administration’s dangerous obsession with borrowing.
“What Nigerians are witnessing, following the approval of a fresh $21 billion in foreign loans is nothing short of a calculated decision to mortgage the country’s future just to cover up the failures of today,” the opposition party stated.
It further said, “Under President Buhari, Nigeria borrowed an average of N4.7 trillion per year, and even that caused widespread concern. But under President Tinubu, borrowing has jumped to N49.8 trillion per year. In just two years, this administration has borrowed more than ten times what Buhari borrowed in the same timeframe.
“At this rate, Nigeria’s total public debt will crash through N200 trillion before the end of the year. We are speeding toward a financial cliff, and those in charge seem to have no brakes, thinking they can borrow their way out of economic problems that require more thoughtful actions and greater fiscal discipline.
“Supporters of this government like to argue that Tinubu’s borrowing is smaller in dollar terms, just $1.7 billion annually, compared to Buhari’s $4.15 billion. But that argument collapses the moment we look at the exchange rate.
“With the Naira now in free fall, again thanks to this administration’s poor police choices, these same loans are costing the country far more. When converted to Naira, Tinubu’s foreign borrowing amounts to N25.5 trillion every year, more than Buhari’s annual average of N2.2 trillion. What we are witnessing is the deepening of a debt trap created by economic mismanagement and a collapsed currency.”
“Over $35 billion has been borrowed from external lenders alone in the last decade of the APC. This is nearly 12 times more in just 10 years.
“Our debt to the World Bank has tripled. What we owe in Eurobonds has grown eleven times over. And now, this government wants to borrow even more, pushing our foreign debt ceiling to $67 billion.
“This reckless borrowing, repeated year after year, with no plan to repay it, and no effort to use it productively, will leave our children repaying debts that they did not incur or benefit from.
“The debts have continued to mount, but infrastructures have remained poor, universities are still grossly underfunded, hospitals are still ill-equipped and electricity supply are as poor as ever.
“So, what exactly are these loans used for? This is the question that Nigerians expect the National Assembly to ask. Instead, it has continued to approve these loans without asking the hard questions, without demanding a plan, and without standing up for the Nigerian people.
“According to the Association of Small Business Owners of Nigeria, the cost of Tinubu’s borrowing is already crushing the very backbone of our economy.
“Small businesses can no longer access credit. Investors are losing confidence and pulling out. And because over 60 percent of our national income is now used to service debt, the government is turning to ordinary Nigerian families and taxing them beyond their limits.
“While other countries are fighting to reduce their debts, the APC is taking out more loans. The recent devaluation of the naira should have reduced the need for external borrowing, but instead, the government has treated it as an excuse to borrow even more,” the statement said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
President Bola Tinubu on Friday presented a budget proposal of N58.47 trillion for the 2026 fiscal year titled Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity to a joint session of the National Assembly, with capital recurrent (non‑debt) expenditure standing at 15.25 trillion, and the capital expenditure at N26.08 trillion, while the crude oil benchmark was pegged at $64.85 per barrel.
Business Post reports that the Brent crude grade currently trades around $60 per barrel. It is also expected to trade at that level or lower next year over worries about oil glut.
At the budget presentation today, Mr Tinubu said the expected total revenue for the year is N34.33 trillion, and the proposal is anchored on a crude oil production of 1.84 million barrels per day, and an exchange rate of N1,400 to the US Dollar.
In terms of sectoral allocation, defence and security took the lion’s share with N5.41 trillion, followed by infrastructure at N3.56 trillion, education received N3.52 trillion, while health received N2.48 trillion.
Addressing the lawmakers, the President described the budget proposal as not “just accounting lines”.
“They are a statement of national priorities,” the president told the gathering. “We remain firmly committed to fiscal sustainability, debt transparency, and value‑for‑money spending.”
The presentation came at a time of heightened insecurity in parts of the country, with mass abductions and other crimes making headlines.
Outlining his government’s plan to address the challenge, President Tinubu reminded the gathering that security “remains the foundation of development”.
He said some of the measures in place to tame insecurity include the modernisation of the Armed Forces, intelligence‑driven policing and joint operations, border security, and technology‑enabled surveillance and community‑based peacebuilding and conflict prevention.
“We will invest in security with clear accountability for outcomes—because security spending must deliver security results,” the president said.
“To secure our country, our priority will remain on increasing the fighting capability of our armed forces and other security agencies by boosting personnel and procuring cutting-edge platforms and other hardware,” he added.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The deadline for the recapitalisation of the Nigerian pension industry has been extended by six months to June 2027 from December 2026.
This extension was approved by the National Pension Commission (PenCom), the agency, which regulates the sector in the country.
Addressing newsmen on Thursday in Lagos, the Director-General of PenCom, Ms Omolola Oloworaran, explained that the shift in deadline was to give operators more time to boost the capital base, dismissing speculations that the exercise had been suspended.
“The recapitalisation has not been suspended. We have communicated the requirements to the Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs), and we expect every operator to be compliant by June 2027. Anyone who is not compliant by then will lose their licence,” Ms Oloworaran told journalists.
She added that, “From a regulatory standpoint, our major challenge is ensuring compliance. We are working with ICPC, labour and the TUC to ensure employers remit pension contributions for their employees.”
The DG noted that engagements with industry operators indicated broad acceptance of the policy, with many PFAs already taking steps to raise additional capital or explore mergers and acquisitions.
“You may see some mergers and acquisitions in the industry, but what is clear is that the recapitalisation exercise is on track and the industry agrees with us,” she stated.
PenCom wants the PFAs to increase their capital base and has created three categories, with the first consists operators with Assets Under Management of N500 billion and above. They are expected to have a minimum capital of N20 billion and one per cent of AUM above N500 billion.
The second category has PFAs with AUM below N500 billion, which must have at least N20 billion as capital base.
The last segment comprises special-purpose PFAs such as NPF Pensions Limited, whose minimum capital was pegged at N30 billion, and the Nigerian University Pension Management Company Limited, whose minimum capital was fixed at N20 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Three securities weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 0.68 per cent on Thursday, December 18.
According to data, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc led the losers’ group after it slipped by N2.87 to N36.78 per share from N39.65 per share, Golden Capital Plc depreciated by 77 Kobo to end at N6.98 per unit versus the previous day’s N7.77 per unit, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc dropped 19 Kobo to sell at N60.00 per share versus Wednesday’s closing price of N60.19 per share.
At the close of business, the market capitalisation lost N16.81 billion to finish at N2.147 billion compared with the preceding session’s N2.164 trillion, and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) declined by 24.76 points to 3,589.88 points from 3,614.64 points.
Yesterday, the volume of securities bought and sold increased by 49.3 per cent to 30.5 million units from 20.4 million units, the value of securities surged by 211.8 per cent to N225.1 million from N72.2 million, and the number of deals jumped by 33.3 per cent to 28 deals from 21 deals.
Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc remained the most traded stock by value with a year-to-date sale of 5.8 billion units valued at N16.4 billion, followed by Okitipupa Plc with 178.9 million units transacted for N9.5 billion, and MRS Oil Plc with 36.1 million units worth N4.9 billion.
Similarly, InfraCredit Plc ended as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units traded for N16.4 billion, trailed by Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 1.2 billion units sold for N420.7 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with 536.9 million units exchanged for N524.9 million.
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