Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s claim that Nigeria excluded public spending equivalent to two percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) from recent national budgets.
In a statement on Saturday, Atiku said that with Nigeria’s economy estimated at about ₦441.5 trillion, the two percent gap represents roughly ₦8.8 trillion spent outside the official budget process.
His comments followed remarks by Christian Ebeke, the IMF’s resident representative in Nigeria, who said the discrepancy makes the country’s fiscal deficit appear smaller than its actual financing needs because some capital expenditure was left out of budget documents and implementation reports.
Referring to the IMF’s findings, Atiku alleged that the administration of Bola Tinubu was executing major government projects outside established budgetary oversight. He argued that such spending bypasses the Auditor-General, Nigeria’s procurement laws and the oversight of the National Assembly.
The former vice-president also alleged that about ₦800 billion had been deducted from statutory allocations due to state governments. He claimed that the combined ₦8.8 trillion in alleged off-budget spending and the ₦800 billion deduction could be used as a political fund ahead of the 2027 general election, although he did not provide evidence for the allegation.
Atiku further argued that while Nigerians have faced economic hardship following the removal of petrol subsidy and successive naira devaluations, the government allegedly maintained access to a large pool of unrecorded public funds.
He said the ₦8.8 trillion, which he estimated at about $5.5 billion, could have supported the $10 billion economic stimulus package he proposed during his 2023 presidential campaign to help stabilise the exchange rate and reduce borrowing costs for businesses.
The former PDP presidential candidate called on the National Assembly of Nigeria to open an emergency investigation into the IMF’s findings. He also urged the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation to conduct an independent audit of all alleged off-budget expenditures.
In addition, Atiku demanded the restoration of the alleged ₦800 billion deducted from state allocations and called for a full public accounting of all funds spent outside the approved national budget.
