Tinubu’s NNPC debt cancellation reeks of financial recklessness — Peter Obi

Former presidential candidate of the Labour Party and aspirant on the platform of the African Democratic Congress, Peter Obi has described as financial recklessness the write-off of over N8 trillion owed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

In a document prepared by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, “Report of October 2025 Revenue Collection Presented at the Federation Account Allocation Committee Meeting Held on 18th November 2025,” President Tinubu had wiped off the debts owed to the Federation Account by the nation oil giant.

Obi in a post on his X handle, @PeterObi expressed concern over the action of the Federal Government at a time the NNPCL recently announced profits.

The ADC chieftain further submitted that the “debt forgiveness,” was unjustifiable at a time Nigerians are “enduring severe hardships due to the removal of petroleum and electricity subsidies with no tangible improvements in their lives.”

The statement read:” Financial recklessness is increasingly becoming normalized in our country. Just last week, it was alarmingly reported that the President approved the write-off of N5.57 trillion and $1.42 billion approximately N8 trillion in debts owed by NNPC, a company that recently announced profits and claimed it had turned a new leaf.

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“This is the same agency currently facing serious audit inquiries for failing to account for ₦210 trillion, an amount that far exceeds the combined Federal budgets of Nigeria from 2023 to 2026. For context, the Federal Government’s budgets for these years were approximately: N21.83 trillion for 2023, N43.56 trillion for 2024, N54.99 trillion for 2025, and an estimated N58.18 trillion for 2026. The total budget for these four years amounts to roughly N178.56 trillion.

“Nigerians are still waiting for the outcome of the National Assembly investigation into the missing trillions. This company is also under scrutiny for trillions spent on non-functional refineries.

“Yet, the President, who also serves as the Minister in charge, has approved the write-off of about ₦8 trillion in NNPC debts.

“Nigerians, already enduring severe hardships due to the removal of petroleum and electricity subsidies with no tangible improvements in their lives, are now confronted with this unexplained debt forgiveness.

“The nearly N8 trillion write-off will effectively replace revenue that the government is currently seeking through unfair taxation.

“It is imperative that the government provides a clear and transparent justification for the write-off, given the immense impact such a large amount of resources could have on national development.

“This almost N8 trillion write-off could have generated the revenue the government now seeks through these unfair taxes. The amount exceeds the 2025 combined Federal budget allocations for education, health, and agriculture, which total N7.1 trillion.

“In practical terms, this money alone could fully fund critical areas of development, lifting millions of Nigerians out of poverty and significantly reducing the over 130 million people currently living in poverty in the country.

“The write-off sum of N8 trillion is nearly twice the 2025 Federal Security budget of N4.9 trillion, even as insecurity continues to devastate communities across the nation.

“Such resources could empower 8 million youths, 10% of the 80 million unemployed creating approximately 1,000 jobs for each of the 8,809 wards, thus substantially reducing the 130 million impoverished individuals in the country.

“The President, who is also the Minister, owes the Nigerian people clear answers. The citizens deserve honesty, fiscal discipline, and governance that protects their interests not the interests of mismanaged corporations or political elites.

“This betrayal of the people must be stopped.

“A New Nigeria is POssible. -PO”