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The president has rejected criticism by former Senator Kogi West, Dino Melaye, for the increase in Nigerian debt profile, describing his statement as a sensational rather than factual.
Reacting through a post on the Handwood X verified on Tuesday, a special advisor to the President of the Tinubu Bola in the media and public communication, Sunday Dare, said Melaye’s comments on “Entertainment, not enlightenment.”
Melaye, in a television interview on the previous day, had blamed the practice of government loans, warning that Nigerian debt trails were not sustainable. He accused that the government’s dependence on external loans could eventually force to find credit from local fintech companies. The former member of the parliament also questioned the request for new loans, including $ 1.7 billion from the World Bank, and noted that the Senate had agreed to around $ 21 billion in external loans.
Responding to, Dare quoted numbers from the Debt Management Office (DMO), which placed the total Nigerian public debt on ₦ 149.39 trillion as of March 31, 2025.
He stressed that the ratio of debt to Nigerian GDP is currently established between 40 and 45 percent, which he described as moderate when compared to 70 percent of South Africa and Ghana more than 90 percent. According to him, the actual challenge lies in the making of income, although this new improvement in the inflows of income has strengthened the capacity of the country to fulfill its debt obligations.
“Borrowing is a legitimate tool to finance growth and reform. What is important is sustainability, not soundbites. Unfortunately, Dino prefers theater than the truth,” Dare said.
The President’s Assistant stated that the loan would remain part of the government’s fiscal strategy to fund reform and infrastructure projects, while warning what he called a political motivated comment.
