The Presidency and ADC presidential aspirant Peter Obi have engaged in a heated debate over the Federal Government’s debt profile, with Obi labeling unproductive borrowing a “killer cancer” while the administration maintains it is essential for infrastructure development.
The Presidency and Peter Obi, a prominent presidential aspirant on the platform of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), traded sharp words on Thursday over the Federal Government’s continued reliance on loans. The dispute was ignited by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s defense of his administration’s fiscal policy, during which he stated that “borrowing is not leprosy.” In a swift rebuttal shared via his X handle, Obi, the 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, countered that debt becomes a “killer cancer” when it is utilized for consumption rather than production. He argued that Nigeria’s current borrowing trends violate the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2007, asserting, “Mr President, borrowing is not only leprosy, but a killer cancer when it is borrowed for consumption and not production as it is in Nigeria today.”
Obi further contended that the government has failed to provide a clear cost-benefit analysis for its loans, emphasizing that the country’s high debt-servicing ratio is crippling its capacity for human development. He maintained that a responsible government must justify its debt by ensuring it translates into measurable economic growth and jobs. “Debt that is not tied to measurable economic value. Debt that does not translate into jobs, growth, or improved living standards for the Nigerian people,” Obi posted. He warned that spending borrowed funds on non-productive sectors creates a state of “double jeopardy,” where current revenues are drained to service debts that failed to expand the nation’s future productive capacity.
In a sharp response, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, dismissed Obi’s criticisms as “demagoguery” and urged him to adopt more rational arguments. Onanuga insisted that the Tinubu administration is borrowing strategically to bridge Nigeria’s massive infrastructure gap rather than to fund recurrent expenditure. “Mr Peter Obi, you have come again with your demagoguery. What point are you trying to make about borrowing? Every sovereign nation borrows, and as President Tinubu rightly said, borrowing is not leprosy,” Onanuga tweeted. He concluded by suggesting that the willingness of international lenders to provide funds is a testament to Nigeria’s creditworthiness and the administration’s ability to repay its obligations.
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