Former presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, has condemned the Senate’s swift approval of President Bola Tinubu’s request for a fresh $6 billion external loan.
PUNCH Online had reported that the Senate approved Tinubu’s request to secure fresh external loans totalling $6 billion, in a move aimed at plugging fiscal gaps and financing key infrastructure projects.
In a letter addressed to the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, and read during plenary, Tinubu sought approval to borrow $5 billion from Abu Dhabi Bank to support budget deficit financing and meet existing debt obligations.
In a separate communication, the President also requested approval to obtain a $1 billion loan facility from UK Export Finance through Citibank in London to fund the rehabilitation of critical port infrastructure.The approval followed the presentation and consideration of a report by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, Senator Aliyu Wamakko (APC, Sokoto North).
The red chamber’s decision came just hours after the President formally wrote to the Senate seeking legislative backing for the facilities, underscoring the Executive’s push to shore up funding for priority sectors
Atiku, in a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, berated the Senate for passing the loan request in less than four hours.He described the move as “not just troubling but alarming,” warning that such decisions could further burden Nigeria’s already strained economy and mortgage the future of generations yet unborn.
Atiku stressed that the National Assembly should not act as a “mere rubber stamp” but as a constitutional safeguard “meant to interrogate, scrutinise, and protect the interests of the Nigerian people.”
Atiku queried the lack of debate and analysis, asking, “What Nigerians have witnessed is not legislative diligence, but a disturbing erosion of oversight responsibility.He added, “The Senate, which ought to serve as a constitutional safeguard, has instead reduced itself to a conveyor belt—processing requests of grave national consequence without due diligence. Borrowing decisions that will bind generations yet unborn cannot, and must not, be treated with this level of casual urgency.”
The former Vice President also highlighted Nigeria’s rising debt, noting that between January and February 2026, the country’s exposure to the World Bank’s International Development Association rose to $18.7 billion, making Nigeria one of the largest recipients of concessional loans globally.
“In March 2026 alone, the President is requesting an additional $6 billion external loan, even as the Debt Management Office continues aggressive domestic borrowing through high-volume bond auctions, largely to finance immediate government obligations and service existing debt,” he said.Atiku warned that this pattern reflected an “unsustainable borrowing trajectory” and questioned the government’s intentions.
“What does a government that appears to be preparing for electoral rejection in 2027 intend to do with an additional $6 billion in borrowed funds—on top of the mounting obligations it has already accumulated in just the first quarter of 2026?” he asked.
He further emphasised that prudence, not haste, should guide fiscal decisions:
“Borrowing is not inherently wrong, but reckless borrowing, enabled by legislative complacency, is dangerous. Nigeria is not a private enterprise to be leveraged at will. The future of our nation cannot be signed away in a matter of hours,” he said.
Atiku, therefore, urged the Senate to uphold its constitutional role and ensure transparency and accountability in governance, adding that history will record the choices made at this critical moment.
