Nigeria in Reverse: How Tinubu’s APC Borrowed More in Two Years Than Buhari Did in Eight; With Nothing to Show for It. (Opinion) 

By George Omagbemi Sylvester | Published by SaharaWeeklyNG.com

When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu took over the reins of power in 2023, many Nigerians, even the skeptics, clung to a faint hope; hope that maybe, just maybe… the man who paraded himself as the “MASTER STRATEGIST” would finally change the economic trajectory of Nigeria. That hope, within two years, has been completely dashed. The data is damning and the suffering is deafening.

Under Muhammadu Buhari’s administration (2015–2023), the Nigerian government borrowed approximately ₦48 trillion. While the debt burden was heavy, it at least came with visible government intervention in the form of fuel subsidies, electricity subsidies, education support and other forms of economic cushioning that gave ordinary Nigerians a modicum of survival. Yet, even that regime was widely criticized for mismanagement, insecurity and sluggish governance.

But today, in less than two years, Bola Tinubu and his economic team (if one can even call it that) have borrowed ₦96 trillion, doubling Buhari’s eight-year debt figure without the shield of fuel subsidies, education support or telecom interventions. This is not just incompetence, it is daylight economic terrorism, weaponized against a helpless population.

“It is one thing to borrow; it is another to waste what you borrow while punishing the poor,” said economist Dr. Abubakar Sule in an interview with The Guardian. “Tinubu has weaponized suffering and made debt an addiction.”

The Illusion of Reform.
The Tinubu administration’s favorite buzzword is “REFORM.” He claimed that removing the fuel subsidy was a bold step towards economic recovery. Nigerians now know the bitter truth: the so-called subsidy removal was never about reform, but a revenue hijack.

Today, fuel prices have skyrocketed to over ₦900 per litre in some states. Transportation, food prices and basic goods have all become luxuries to the average citizen. Meanwhile, state-backed relief efforts remain largely cosmetic, if not completely non-existent.

Yet, the Tinubu led APC GOVERNMENT keeps BORROWING.

Where is the money going? Infrastructure? No. Healthcare? No. Education? Not even close. Security? Zero.

Instead, we’re seeing lavish government spending on luxury convoys, foreign trips, vanity projects like the N10 billion solar panels for Aso Rock and an obscene increase in the cost of governance. To quote Professor Pat Utomi, “This government behaves like a carnival of clowns dancing on the graves of the poor.”

The Death of Education and Social Protection.
Under Buhari, Nigeria’s public universities went on strike multiple times, but at least there were subsidies and dialogue. Under Tinubu, universities are crumbling, secondary school education is deteriorating and teachers are unpaid across several states. Yet the President recently announced scholarships for foreign students in St. Lucia, while Nigerian students sit idle in classrooms without chairs, teachers or hope.

How does a president remove educational subsidies at home and then dish out scholarships abroad? That is not statesmanship; it is state-sponsored stupidity.

In the words of Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, “We are living in a time when our leaders treat Nigeria as a burden they must escape from, not a country they are building.”

The Subsidy Lie and Economic Collapse.
When Tinubu removed fuel subsidies in May 2023, he proclaimed: “Subsidy is gone!” Nigerians cheered, hoping the savings would lead to increased capital projects, job creation and economic growth.

What has followed is an ECONOMIC HORROR MOVIE. The removal of fuel subsidy without any social cushioning measures has plunged millions into multi-dimensional poverty. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), over 133 million Nigerians are now classified as multi-dimensionally poor. This is not just a number; it is a nation being eaten alive from within.

Worse still, the government still pays quasi-subsidies through NNPC in a complex web of opaque forex deals. According to a report by Premium Times, the government secretly paid over ₦3.6 trillion in “under-recovery” to oil marketers in the past year alone proving that subsidy is not dead, it has just changed clothes and gone underground.

So what then was the purpose of the suffering?

A Government of Borrowers and Beggars.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) revealed in Q1 2025 that the country’s public debt now stands at over ₦121 trillion, with Tinubu’s administration accounting for ₦96 trillion of that figure. This level of borrowing in just 23 months is not only unsustainable; it is economic sabotage disguised as policy.

The Debt Management Office (DMO) has warned that the country is now spending 96% of its revenue on debt servicing. That means out of every ₦100 the government earns, ₦96 goes to repaying debt, leaving only ₦4 for education, healthcare, infrastructure and security.

This is not GOVERNANCE. This is NATIONAL ECONOMIC ENSLAVEMENT.

Agents of APC vs Agents of Change.
It must be said loud and clear: anyone who is against the coalition movement to unseat APC in 2027 is an enemy of the Nigerian people. They are either benefitting from this disaster or are complicit in its continuation. Every well-meaning Nigerian, regardless of party lines, tribe or religion, must now unite behind a people-centered coalition.

This is no longer about party politics; it is about NATIONAL SURVIVAL.

The Action Democratic Congress (ADC), Labour Party (LP), Social Democratic Party (SDP) and splinter PDP blocs forming a revolutionary alliance is not a threat to democracy, it is democracy’s last hope. The fear the ruling party is showing (blocking event venues, intimidating coalition leaders and promoting disinformation) is a confirmation that they are threatened by the truth.

“When the government is more afraid of a coalition than Boko Haram, you know the system is collapsing,” said activist and writer Aisha Yesufu.

APC Must Go: 2027 is Non-Negotiable.
The 2023 election was marred by INEC’s failure, judicial compromise and massive electoral manipulation. Despite the controversy, Bola Tinubu was sworn in; but legitimacy cannot be enforced by courts alone, it must be earned through service, competence and results.

Tinubu has failed on all three counts.

The APC has destroyed the ECONOMY, eroded HUMAN DIGNITY and CRIMINALIZED the right to PROTEST. Under their watch:

The naira collapsed from ₦450/$ to over ₦1,500/$.

Inflation soared to over 34% as of May 2025.

Food prices have more than tripled, with basic items like rice costing over ₦70,000 per bag.

Unemployment and underemployment have become the norm.

Nigerians cannot afford another four years of this nightmare. 2027 must be the end of APC and the beginning of a people-first era.

Final Word.
We must not be fooled by propaganda, token gestures or last-minute giveaways as 2027 approaches. Nigeria is on life support and the ventilator is failing. The debt crisis, the collapse of social systems and the impoverishment of the masses are all signs of a failed state in the making.

We can still change the story. The coalition is the beginning of Nigeria’s rescue mission and those who oppose it are either afraid of change or accomplices in destruction.

“When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty.” ~ Thomas Jefferson

In 2027, Nigerians must choose resistance. The future of over 200 million people is at stake.

#EndAPCMisrule #CoalitionForRescue #NigeriaWillRiseAgain

Written by George Omagbemi Sylvester | Published by SaharaWeeklyNG.com