By Henry Umoru
ABUJA — The Federal Government has dismissed claims that the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has borrowed close to ₦80 trillion within its first three years in office, describing such figures as exaggerated and a product of accounting adjustments and misinterpretation of debt data.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, gave the clarification on Monday while appearing before the Senate Committee on Finance, chaired by Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East), to provide updates on the state of the nation’s economy.
Oyedele was responding to questions from lawmakers, including Senator Adamu Aliero (APC, Kebbi Central), over reports that the current administration inherited a debt profile of about ₦75 trillion and had added another ₦80 trillion.
The minister explained that while Nigeria’s public debt stood at about ₦75 trillion when the administration assumed office, subsequent increases were largely influenced by currency depreciation, debt revaluation and the formal recognition of existing obligations.
