Budget Clash: APC Chieftain Slams Tinubu’s N68 Trillion Spend as ‘Unrealistic’

It’s rare to see an APC chieftain publicly tear apart his own party’s budget, but Senator Abubakar Yusuf isn’t holding back. The former lawmaker has slammed President Tinubu’s N68.32 trillion 2026 budget, calling it a work of fiction lacking a realistic plan.

Yusuf’s biggest gripe is the borrowing. He argues that Nigeria’s debt is now almost equal to its total budget, a situation he describes as “splurging.” He claims that about 40 per cent of the budget is essentially wasteful spending rather than needs-based allocation.

The numbers are indeed staggering. The budget earmarks N15.8 trillion for debt service alone—meaning a huge chunk of the N68 trillion is just paying off old loans. Yusuf argues that if he were in the President’s shoes, he would have refused to sign the bill because there is no clear path to funding it without further sinking the country into debt.

Meanwhile, the government is playing defense, brushing off similar claims from Peter Obi about revenue leakages. But when the critique comes from within the APC, it suggests a growing rift over the “Tinubunomics” approach to fiscal management.

For the average Nigerian, these trillions are abstract. But for the political class, this budget is becoming a symbol of an economy running on credit and hope, with very little actual plan for sustainability.

Sources: Naija News, The Sun, TheCable