Atiku Rejects Tinubu’s $500m World Bank Loan Plan Days Before Next Inauguration
- Atiku Abubakar rejected the Tinubu administration's plan to secure a $500 million World Bank loan scheduled for approval just days before the next inauguration
- The ADC presidential candidate said no outgoing president has the right to burden his successor with fresh debt in the final days of his tenure
- Atiku's campaign council called on the World Bank to halt approval of the loan until Nigerians receive full disclosure of its terms and repayment obligations
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Legit.ng journalist Adekunle Dada has over eight years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international issues
FCT, Abuja - Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has spoken out against President Bola Tinubu's move to obtain a $500 million loan from the World Bank.
The former vice president said the outgoing administration has no business saddling Nigeria with new debt on its way out of office.
Source: Twitter
The statement was issued on Tuesday, November 10, 2026 and made available to Legit.ng by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication for the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, on behalf of Atiku.
According to the statement, the proposed $500 million facility is scheduled for consideration by the World Bank on May 25, 2027, only four days before the next presidential inauguration on May 29, 2027.
Atiku challenges the timing of the loan
Atiku argued that locking the country into a major financial commitment this close to a change of government is both irresponsible and unfair to Nigerians.
"Taking loans as if you were a drunken sailor is a road to economic bondage, a second slavery. If this government is determined to mortgage Nigeria's future and place our country at the mercy of creditors, we will not accept it," he said.
He added that the loan push appeared deliberate.
"The Tinubu administration's latest move is a preemptive attempt to lock Nigeria into a path of economic instability, even after Nigerians have roundly rejected its poverty inflicting reforms. A government cannot use its final days in office to bind the country and make governance more difficult for its successor."
Atiku also appealed directly to the World Bank, urging it not to approve the loan on the current timetable. He called for full public disclosure of the facility's terms, risks, and repayment conditions before any commitment is made.
Atiku rules out fresh borrowing on day one
The former vice president made clear that his administration would not inherit the loan's terms without resistance.
"I will not accept it. The Atiku administration will commence on May 29, 2027, and we will not begin our government by taking another loan. We will begin with a commitment to responsible leadership, fiscal discipline and the protection of Nigeria's future," he said.
He also referenced the January 16 election date, framing it as a choice between the current administration's borrowing pattern and what he described as a government focused on affordable living.
Citing a Swahili proverb, Atiku warned that a leader who borrows on the way out of power leaves his successor constrained by obligations the people never agreed to:
"If you borrow a man's legs, you will go where he directs."
Recall that Atiku said President Tinubu's request to borrow $20.52bn and €1.045bn vindicates a warning he issued on October 12
Source: Twitter
Atiku urges Senate to reject Tinubu's $7.7bn loan request
Meanwhile, Legit.ng also reported that Atiku condemned Tinubu's latest borrowing request of $7.7 billion, or about ₦10.79 trillion, to part-finance the 2026 budget deficit.
The request came barely days after a separate $20.52 billion and €1.045 billion external borrowing proposal was sent to the National Assembly.
Atiku's campaign council called on the Senate to demand a full project list, loan terms and repayment plan before any approval is considered.
Source: Legit.ng
