Labour Party candidate Peter Obi has called on the Federal Government to reveal the extent of the nation’s deficit incurred by the administration led by President Bola Tinubu.
Obi Criticizes 2023 Supplementary Budget as “Lavish Indulgence”
National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu expressed concern on Monday, stating that the current administration inherited a financially strained country from former President Muhammadu Buhari. Ribadu highlighted that revenue generated under the Tinubu-led government is being used to repay what was taken from the country.
Taking to his Twitter profile on Thursday, former Anambra State governor Peter Obi emphasized the need for transparency and accountability. He urged the Federal Government to disclose the deficit inherited from the previous All Progressives Congress administration, citing the importance of portraying the government’s commitment to openness.
Obi criticized the Buhari government for not disclosing the deficit when it claimed transparency in 2015 against the Goodluck Jonathan-led administration.
FG Hits Back at Obi Over Supplementary Budget Criticism
The tweets read,
“I just read yesterday, a widely publicised story from the present APC-led Federal Government saying that they inherited a bankrupt nation from their predecessor APC administration. But the story failed to disclose what they inherited which had qualified us for bankruptcy status.
“One major characteristic of responsible governance is transparency and strict accountability. This demands that the government disclose exactly the degree of deficit they inherited. What is inherited should be disclosed to enable the public to know where we are and where we are headed.
“Recall that the previous APC government made a similar claim in 2015 against the PDP administration that handed over to them without telling the nation what it actually inherited.
“Rather, they took our debt profile from N12.6 trillion in 2015 to N87 trillion in 2023 when they left office without improving on any indices of development: Education, Health, Poverty eradication, and Security.”
He underscored the significance of allocating public funds to vital sectors such as education, security, and healthcare.
“Instead, the condition of the nation on every development index got worse, leading to the present sad state. Nigerians know things are bad, and they experience it daily. What they now want to hear regularly are measurable and verifiable steps to improve the situation.
“Also, the alarm raised by the government about the bad state of our finances raises questions about the rationale behind some expenditure items in the supplementary budget recently signed into law,” he stated.
Additionally, the LP presidential candidate called for a reduction in the cost of governance, asserting that measurable and verifiable steps are eagerly awaited by the citizens to improve the nation’s economy.
“The present revelation also goes to buttress the argument that I have made since electioneering season that the cost of governance is too high and must be drastically reduced.