$500m Loan: Atiku Warns Tinubu Against Burdening Successor With Debt

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has warned President Bola Tinubu towards committing Nigeria to a proposed $500 million World Bank mortgage so near the tip of his present four-year tenure. He argued that no administration ought to burden the nation with new debt with out sufficient justification and public scrutiny.

Atiku stated the proposed borrowing, scheduled for consideration a couple of days earlier than the May 29, 2027 presidential inauguration, might constrain the following administration and impose compensation obligations on Nigerians with out permitting them to scrutinise the choice.

In a press release by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication, ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Atiku described the proposed mortgage as an try and mortgage Nigeria’s future and urged the World Bank to not approve the power on the contemplated timetable.

“Taking loans as if you were a drunken sailor is a road to economic bondage, a second slavery. If this government is determined to mortgage Nigeria’s future and place our country at the mercy of creditors, we will not accept it,” he stated.

Atiku expressed concern over the timing of the proposed facility, which, in response to the report he cited, is scheduled for consideration on May 25, 2027, barely 4 days earlier than the following presidential inauguration.

He accused the Tinubu administration of making an attempt to commit the nation to recent monetary obligations within the closing days of its present tenure, warning that such a choice might complicate governance for the incoming administration.

“The Tinubu administration’s latest move is a preemptive attempt to lock Nigeria into a path of economic instability, even after Nigerians have roundly rejected its poverty-inflicting reforms. A government cannot use its final days in office to bind the country and make governance more difficult for its successor,” he stated.

Invoking a Swahili proverb, the previous Vice-President warned that borrowing shortly earlier than the tip of a presidential tenure might depart a successor constrained by obligations imposed by collectors.

“As the Swahili proverb warns, ‘If you borrow a man’s legs, you will go where he directs.’ A leader who borrows on his way out leaves his successor walking on the lender’s legs, constrained by obligations and choices the people did not make,” Atiku stated.

He referred to as on the World Bank to defer consideration of the proposed facility, insisting that Nigerians should first be allowed to scrutinise its phrases, dangers and compensation obligations.

“We call on the World Bank not to approve this proposed loan on the timetable now being contemplated. Nigerians deserve full disclosure of its terms, risks and repayment obligations, and the opportunity to scrutinise a commitment that will outlast the administration pursuing it,” he stated.

Atiku, who stated he might assume workplace on May 29, 2027, if elected, pledged that he wouldn’t start his proposed administration with one other mortgage, however with a dedication to accountable management and financial self-discipline.