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The presidency has dismissed former Anambra governor Peter Obi’s claim that the Tinubu administration has accumulated nearly 200 trillion naira in debt, calling it “absolutely ridiculous.”
Obi, who is the Nigeria Democratic Coalition presidential candidate for the 2027 election, accused President Bola Tinubu’s government of “imprudent borrowing” that escalated Nigeria’s total debt to approximately 200 trillion naira.
Excessive Borrowing Without Accountability: Further Affirmation of Imprudent Governance.
President Bola Tinubu’s administration has engaged in remarkably imprudent borrowing, escalating Nigeria’s total debt to approximately N200 trillion. This represents an increase of over N100…
— Peter Obi (@PeterObi) June 9, 2026
“A presidential candidate believing that an administration with less than 100 trillion naira total budget in the last two budget cycles have borrowed almost 200 trillion naira is absolutely ridiculous,” Segun Dada, a senior special assistant to President Tinubu, wrote on X on Tuesday.
Dada argued that the debt portfolio increase over the past three years was largely driven by currency devaluation, not new borrowings.
“Vast majority of them are mathematical impacts of currency devaluation which you also promised to implement during your campaigns,” he wrote.
Dada noted that the administration inherited a ways and means debt of around 20 trillion naira which was securitised for repayment.
He added that Nigeria’s public debt includes loans taken by subnational governments over the years.
Dada noted that Nigeria’s debt in dollar value has remained relatively stable, ranging from $108 billion in 2023 to $109 billion in 2026.
He also pointed to growth in net external reserves, from $3 billion in 2023 to around $40 billion in 2026.
“We will continue to set the records straight at every given opportunity while allowing Mr President to focus on delivering his mandate to the good people of Nigeria,” Dada wrote.
Seems Mr. @PeterObi has now abandoned the trouble he’s facing within the NDC and the horrible update from his beloved Indonesia about their dwindling economy to quickly distract us with misinformation again but we will not watch while this goes uncorrected.
For the umpteenth… https://t.co/9bMC5pjBzG
— Daddy D.O🇳🇬 (@DOlusegun) June 9, 2026
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