- Nigerian opposition leader Atiku Abubakar has criticised the reported swift approval of a $6 billion external loan request by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu
- Atiku described the process as a dangerous erosion of legislative oversight that threatens the country’s economic stability
- Earlier today, Tuesday, March 31, 2026, President Tinubu asked the National Assembly to approve adjustments to the 2026 appropriation bill, proposing an increase of N9 trillion
Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering security matters and counterinsurgency in Nigeria and Africa.
FCT, Abuja – Former Vice President and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has expressed deep concern over reports that the Senate approved President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s request for a fresh $6 billion external loan “within a record time, reportedly less than four hours after its presentation.”
The Senate on Tuesday, March 31, passed the 2026 budget after adding the N9.3 trillion latest request by President Bola Tinubu, bringing the total figure to N68.323 trillion, according to Premium Times.
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Apart from approving the president’s request, the Senate also increased the total budget by N623 billion.
The upper chamber increased the total budget from N67.7 trillion, as requested by the president, to N68.323 trillion.
The budget was approved after most senators endorsed it through voice votes. Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, subsequently announced the budget’s passage.
The budget approval came a few hours after Akpabio read a letter from President Tinubu requesting an upward revision of the budget by N9.3 trillion, raising it from the initial N58.47 trillion to N67.7 trillion.
Atiku condemns rapid Senate loan approval
Reacting through a statement issued by his senior special assistant on public communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku described the development as not just troubling but alarming. He noted that a decision of such profound national consequence, one that will further burden an already strained economy and mortgage the future of generations yet unborn, cannot be treated with such reckless urgency.
Guardian quoted Atiku as saying:
“What Nigerians have witnessed is not legislative diligence, but a disturbing erosion of oversight responsibility.”
He stressed that the National Assembly is not designed to function as a mere rubber stamp but as a constitutional safeguard meant to interrogate, scrutinise, and protect the interests of the Nigerian people.
Source: Facebook
The presidential hopeful added that the speed of the approval suggests ‘a troubling sense of desperation,’ one that does not inspire confidence in the long-term economic direction of the country.
He stated:
“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.”
Atiku denies resigning from politics
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that ahead of the 2027 elections, Atiku accused “anti-democratic elements” of attempting to create confusion and dampen the momentum of the ADC.
According to a statement by Atiku’s media office, the former Vice President asserted that insinuations that he has quit active politics are fake news.
Source: Legit.ng
