In a major political development, Obi slams Tinubu over his administration’s recent revenue claims, former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi declared that skyrocketing public debt and worsening economic hardship completely overshadow the government’s reported revenue growth.
In a viral statement on his official X handle, the opposition leader questioned the country’s financial management. He asked a direct question: “Where did all the money go?”
“The debate centers on two completely different views of Nigeria’s balance sheet. President Tinubu recently celebrated a major financial milestone. He noted that government revenue jumped over 100 percent, climbing from ₦16.8 trillion in 2022 to ₦35 trillion in 2025. However, Obi argues that geopolitical tensions drove this windfall rather than sustainable policy. He criticized the government for ignoring existing debts and choosing a path of excessive borrowing.
“Shockingly, while Nigerians expected a reduction in borrowing with the exponential increase in revenue, the opposite is the case.” — Peter Obi
According to Obi, the administration’s habits pushed Nigeria’s total public debt to ₦200 trillion. This represents a staggering ₦100 trillion increase in just three years. To emphasize his point, the former governor compared these figures to past political eras. He stated that the current administration accumulated more debt in three years than the ₦49 trillion built up during former President Muhammadu Buhari’s entire eight-year tenure.
Obi asserted that critical living standards crashed alongside the rising debt. He highlighted a dramatic surge in multidimensional poverty, which jumped from 87 million people in 2023 to over 140 million in 2025. During this same period, unemployment figures climbed. Furthermore, Nigeria’s GDP per capita fell from $1,597 to $1,223, signaling a severe drop in personal wealth for everyday citizens.
The Presidency quickly dismissed Obi’s financial critique. Presidential aides accused the opposition candidate of misinterpreting the numbers and leaving out vital context. Dada Olusegun, the Special Assistant to the President on Social Media, offered two main defenses for the current figures.
First, a massive portion of the current debt profile belongs to previous administrations. This includes ₦20 trillion in Ways and Means advances from the Central Bank that the current government had to secure into bonds. Second, foreign loans use external currencies like the US Dollar. Therefore, the depreciation of the Naira automatically inflates the total debt value on paper, even without new borrowing. Olusegun also reminded the public that the national debt database includes liabilities from all 36 state governments. Observers cannot blame the Federal Government alone for the total balance.
In his closing remarks, Obi called for an immediate end to opaque public resource management. He urged the government’s economic team to release a detailed financial ledger. He believes citizens deserve to see exactly how the state spent both the ₦35 trillion revenue and the newly borrowed trillions.
