KEY POINTS

• Nigeria’s main opposition party, the PDP, has rejected President Tinubu’s 2026 budget proposal, labelling it a “budget of consolidated renewed sufferings” that fails to address the severe economic hardship and poverty faced by citizens.

• The criticism challenges the administration’s economic narrative, contrasting current growth figures with higher past performance and citing World Bank data on extreme poverty to argue for “growth without prosperity.”

• The PDP also raised concerns about fiscal discipline, citing the concurrent operation of multiple budgets, and questioned the effectiveness of security funding, setting the stage for a contentious legislative debate amid a national cost-of-living crisis.

In a sweeping critique of the administration’s fiscal direction, Nigeria’s main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has vehemently condemned President Bola Tinubu’s proposed ₦58.47 trillion budget for the 2026 fiscal year.

The proposal, formally titled “Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity,” was presented to a joint session of the National Assembly on Friday, December 19th. President Tinubu outlined a spending plan heavily geared towards security, infrastructure, and human capital, anchored on a crude oil benchmark of $64.85 per barrel, a daily production estimate of 1.84 million barrels, and an exchange rate of ₦1,400 to the US Dollar.

The proposal allocates ₦26.08 trillion to capital expenditure and ₦15.25 trillion to recurrent (non-debt) spending.

The President framed the budget as a continuation of his administration’s reform agenda, citing a 3.98 per cent GDP growth rate as evidence of economic stabilization.

However, the announcement was met with immediate skepticism from economic analysts and civil society groups who point to a persistent cost-of-living crisis, with inflation stubbornly high and the naira experiencing significant volatility. This economic backdrop sets the stage for a contentious legislative debate in the coming weeks.

A Scathing Critique: PDP Lambasts “Budget of Consolidated Sufferings”

In a swift and detailed response, the PDP dismissed the administration’s optimistic projections, arguing that the budget formalizes the economic pain experienced by ordinary Nigerians.

In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, the party portrayed the document as profoundly out of touch. “We see it rather as a budget of consolidated renewed sufferings, because what Nigerians have witnessed since the birth of this administration is nothing but unmitigated hardship on the people, while the governing class relishes in affluence,” the party stated. The PDP challenged the President’s growth narrative, insisting that macroeconomic figures have not translated into tangible relief for the populace.

The opposition dug deeper into the data, contrasting the current 3.98 per cent growth with the 6.87 per cent achieved in 2013 under a PDP-led government, which it attributed to robust non-oil sector performance. “The President celebrates a 3.98 per cent growth rate, whereas a reality check reveals excruciating hunger, a high cost of living, and other indices of economic hardship which Nigerians are currently facing,” the PDP argued. To bolster its case, the party cited the 2025 World Bank Poverty and Equity Brief, indicating that over 30.9 per cent of Nigerians live below the international extreme poverty line. “This shows that there is growth without prosperity for our citizens, meaning that despite GDP growth, poverty remains endemic,” the statement read, accusing the administration of fostering an economy where gains are concentrated and not widely shared.

Beyond economic metrics, the PDP raised alarms over fiscal management and security. The party seized on the President’s admission that the execution of the 2024 capital budget would extend into December 2025, implying multiple budgets are running concurrently.

“No two budgets should operate concurrently,” the PDP asserted, calling the practice a threat to transparency and accountability. On security, despite the significant allocation, the party warned that funding alone is insufficient. It called for demonstrable, effective utilization to upgrade equipment and welfare for security forces, who it noted are often outgunned by non-state actors. The PDP concluded by emphasizing that “Financial accountability and transparency are critical to public trust-building and effective public administration,” principles it alleges are being undermined.

As the budget moves to the National Assembly for scrutiny, it arrives amidst a fiercely polarized political climate. Lawmakers are expected to dissect its assumptions closely, particularly the optimistic oil revenue projections and the exchange rate framework. The debate will unfold against daily reminders of the nation’s challenges: rising food prices, widespread insecurity, and mounting public debt.

The Tinubu administration now faces the dual task of defending its fiscal strategy to legislators and convincing a weary citizenry that this budget offers a genuine path to shared prosperity, rather than a consolidation of their struggles.