By RismadarVoice Media
December 21, 2025
Opposition parties in Nigeria have criticized President Bola Tinubu’s proposed ₦58.18 trillion 2026 Appropriation Bill, faulting its heavy reliance on borrowing, ballooning debt-service costs.
The parties expressed concern over a growing disconnect between rising budget figures, worsening living conditions for common Nigerians.
The criticism followed Tinubu’s presentation of the “Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity” to a joint sitting of the National Assembly on Friday, where he projected cautious economic growth, pledged tighter fiscal discipline, tougher revenue enforcement, and a strong security posture.
Rufus Ayenugba, National Publicity Secretary of the Social Democratic Party, said the party was worried about “the money being earmarked to service debt and the humongous loan this administration keeps borrowing,” noting that average Nigerians were not benefiting from these funds.
He also questioned recurring large security allocations, warning that successive governments had used security spending to shield themselves from scrutiny, without delivering tangible results.
Labour Party spokesman, Obiora Ifoh said deficit financing would inevitably force borrowing, warned that debt servicing was increasingly crowding out development spending.
He urged the government to ensure new revenue measures did not worsen the burden on the poor, decried corruption in budget implementation, citing recent scandals in regulatory agencies.
Dr. Yunusa Tanko, National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement Worldwide, accused the government of weak accountability, fiscal recklessness, arguing that borrowings had not justified even the 2025 budget expenditure. He described the administration’s fiscal practices as “a one-way ticket to governance”, condemned the National Assembly for weak oversight.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) described the proposed budget as a “Budget of consolidated renewed sufferings,” claiming it deepens economic pain while enriching the governing class.
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, criticized the extension of the 2024 capital budget into 2025, saying concurrent budgets undermine fiscal discipline, transparency, accountability.
Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of Kogi Central urged the President to ensure the ₦58.18tn budget delivers measurable benefits for Nigerians, stressing that citizens expect budgets to translate into jobs, infrastructure, healthcare, education, social services; not just impressive projections.
As the debate moves to the National Assembly, opposition parties and critical lawmakers insist that the true measure of the 2026 budget will be its ability to ease hardship, curb debt accumulation, restore public confidence in resource management.
