The Presidency has dismissed former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s criticism of President Bola Tinubu’s economic policies, describing his arguments as outdated and disconnected from current economic realities.
In a statement titled, “Facts, Not Fear: A Point-by-Point Response to Atiku Abubakar on Nigeria’s Reform Journey,” Presidential Spokesperson Bayo Onanuga said Atiku’s assessment relied largely on 2024 economic data while ignoring gains recorded in 2025 and 2026 under the Tinubu administration.
Onanuga said Nigeria’s dollar-denominated Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose from about $253 billion after the exchange-rate reset to approximately $377 billion, while GDP in naira terms increased from N314 trillion to about N530 trillion since the reforms began.
He described the administration’s policies as necessary structural reforms aimed at correcting long-standing economic distortions inherited from previous governments, adding that many of the country’s challenges predated the Tinubu administration.
On borrowing, Onanuga said Nigeria’s debt profile remained sustainable, noting that the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio stood at about 40 per cent, lower than those of South Africa, Egypt and Kenya. He added that the debt-service-to-revenue ratio had dropped from nearly 100 per cent in late 2022 to below 60 per cent due to improved revenue generation and fiscal management.
Defending the removal of fuel subsidy, he said the policy had eliminated decades of fiscal leakages and increased statutory allocations to states and local governments, enabling higher spending on infrastructure, salaries, pensions and social programmes.
On taxation, Onanuga said the administration’s reforms were designed to broaden the tax base while reducing the burden on low-income earners and small businesses.
He also highlighted achievements in healthcare and education, including the revitalisation of more than 3,000 primary healthcare centres, the retraining of 78,000 frontline health workers, the execution of over 11,000 basic education projects and the disbursement of more than N303 billion in student loans through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) to 1.64 million students across more than 300 tertiary institutions.
Onanuga further cited investments in roads, railways, ports, power, housing, airports, gas projects and digital infrastructure as evidence of the administration’s commitment to long-term economic growth.
Responding to Atiku’s claim of an N7.98 trillion oil windfall, he said the allegation failed to account for lower-than-projected crude oil production, despite favourable international oil prices. He added that part of the country’s crude production had also been committed to servicing loans obtained to fund fuel subsidy payments.
On inflation, Onanuga said the rate dropped to 14.4 per cent in November 2025 before rising to 15.91 per cent following disruptions linked to the Middle East conflict. He added that government intervention programmes, including NG-CARES, HOPE and SOLID, valued at more than $3 billion, as well as cash transfers to 15 million households, were helping to cushion the impact of the reforms.
He urged political leaders to base public discourse on verifiable facts, maintaining that the Tinubu administration’s reforms were designed to reposition the Nigerian economy for long-term growth and stability.
