NDC Tackles Tinubu Over Fresh N10.79tn Loan Request

The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has taken a swipe at President Bola Tinubu over his request to the National Assembly for approval to secure a fresh $7.7bn (approximately N10.79tn) external loan to finance part of the 2026 budget deficit.

This was just as the party described the latest borrowing request as another episode in what it called Tinubu’s “one-week, new loan” borrowing spree.

In a statement released on Thursday, the spokesperson of the NDC National Presidential Campaign Council, Dr Chiogo Constance Ikokwu, urged Nigerians to participate massively in the 2027 general elections and use their votes to demand accountability and fiscal responsibility.

She said the country’s growing debt burden and the financial obligations being transferred to future generations made the 2027 election too important for citizens to ignore.

Ikokwu urged Nigerians to vote for the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and his running mate, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, in the January 16, 2027 election.

She also called on Nigerians to emulate Americans, whom she described as champions of democratic participation, by turning out in large numbers to vote.

“Americans demonstrated the power of the ballot in their November 4, 2026 elections,” she said.

The NDC spokesperson noted that Americans, like Nigerians, were experiencing high living costs and economic hardship but had demonstrated that citizens could influence political leadership through the ballot.

She accused Tinubu of repeatedly seeking fresh loans while expressing concern over what she described as the National Assembly’s failure to scrutinise the borrowing requests independently.

“Truly, it seems that right now, we cannot stop President Tinubu from his One Week! New Loan! One Week! New loan! Borrowing spree, which is already hitting the roof, because, regrettably, he has pocketed the National Assembly. We seem to have a rubber-stamp legislature that before a loan request formally gets to its desk, it has already been endorsed,” Ikokwu said.

She, however, urged Nigerians not to lose hope, insisting that the ballot remained the most effective instrument for changing the country’s political direction.

“But Nigerians should not despair. The ballot remains our most powerful instrument of change. We appeal to citizens to use their votes to rescue the country from this debt trap and entrust its future to a government committed to transparency, accountability and prudent management of public resources,” she added.

The party maintained that Nigeria’s economic future should not be compromised by unsustainable borrowing and the mismanagement of public funds.

Meanwhile, the Senate has referred Tinubu’s request for approval to secure a $7.7bn (N10.79tn) foreign loan to its Committee on Local and Foreign Debts for scrutiny.

The decision followed the reading of a letter from the President by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during Wednesday’s plenary.

In the letter dated October 26, 2026, Tinubu requested approval to raise N10,790,366,835,481, equivalent to $7,707,404,882.49, at an exchange rate of N1,400 to the dollar.

Akpabio subsequently directed the committee to examine the request and submit its report as soon as practicable.

The proposed borrowing forms part of the Federal Government’s 2026 financing plan to address a budget deficit estimated at N31.4tn.

Tinubu explained that the 2026 Appropriation Act provided for N29.2tn in new borrowing, comprising N18.4tn in domestic loans and N10.79tn in external financing.

“The 2026 Appropriation Act approved the sum of N29.2tn as new borrowings to part-finance the 2026 budget deficit of about N31.4tn,” the President stated in the letter.

He said the request complied with Sections 21(1) and 27(1) of the Debt Management Office (Establishment, etc.) Act, 2003, which require legislative approval for external borrowing proposals.

The President listed several financing options available to the government, including concessional and commercial loans from multilateral and bilateral institutions, International Monetary Fund facilities, bridge financing, loan syndications and direct borrowing from international financial institutions.

However, he said the government would prioritise Eurobond issuance because of its relatively faster processing time and capacity to raise substantial funds at comparatively lower costs.

Tinubu noted that the final interest rates, repayment periods and other conditions would depend on prevailing market conditions when the financing arrangements were concluded.

He assured lawmakers that the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Debt Management Office would negotiate favourable terms for the country.

On the proposed utilisation of the funds, the President identified defence and security, transportation, agriculture, power, education and healthcare as priority sectors.

He said the borrowing would provide additional resources for implementing projects and programmes captured in the 2026 Appropriation Act while supporting his administration’s macroeconomic reforms.

Tinubu also argued that the foreign currency proceeds would strengthen Nigeria’s external reserves and provide additional support for the naira.

According to him, the funds would be received by the Central Bank of Nigeria on behalf of the Federal Government, thereby increasing the country’s foreign reserves.