Peter Obi, the 2027 presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has reiterated his position that President Bola Tinubu should resign over incompetence, lack of compassion and failure to deliver campaign promises.
Peter Obi, in a statement on his 𝕏 handle on Sunday, accused Tinubu’s government of presiding over grand corruption, citing an alleged ₦8.83 trillion in unbudgeted expenditure, as highlighted in a recent International Monetary Fund (IMF) consultation report.
He said the reported expenditure was not captured in the 2025 budget, adding that it was outside legislative oversight and administrative scrutiny.
He said the ₦8.83 trillion is about two per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), over 35 per cent of the country’s 2025 capital budget of ₦23.96 trillion and more than the combined allocations for education and health.
The ex-Governor of Anambra State argued that the development was not an isolated case but part of a larger pattern of corruption under the Tinubu administration.
Peter Obi said that with daily revelations of the pervasive corruption in the present administration and its total lack of care for the welfare and security of the Nigerian people, the only sane thing to do is for President Tinubu to resign from office.
“The latest report of the IMF consultation further heightens fear about the magnitude of grand corruption under the Tinubu government. The IMF now reveals that about N8.83 trillion expenditure undertaken in 2025 is not reflected in the budget. This is an unbudgeted expenditure and therefore not subject to legislative oversight or administrative scrutiny. This is terrible. The N8.83 trillion is composed of:
1.Approx. 2% of our GDP.
2. Over 35% of Nigeria’s N23.96 trillion 2025 capital project budget. In fact, it is greater than the actual released capital funding for 2025.
3. It is more than the combined budget for education (N3.52 trillion) and health (N2.38 trillion).
“If such an amount is properly used and accounted for, it can transform Nigeria’s public health and education sectors. It has the potential to create hundreds of cottage industries that can provide jobs to thousands of graduates and build a firm foundation for economic development. But we can’t know. It’s not a one-off.
“This is a pattern of grand corruption that has become part of this administration. We have enough to worry about the state of corruption under President Tinubu. Corruption which is rooted in total disregard of elementary rules of public finance management, constitutes a serious threat to national security and the stability of the Nigerian state. The capture of the Nigerian state and the looting of its resources undermine the foundations of state stability and increase poverty and state failure.
“This latest revelation is a testimony to the gross corruption, incompetence and insensitivity of the APC government. With the rising poverty and the pressing demand for massive upgrades of social and physical infrastructure, a responsible and responsive government would ensure that N8.83 trillion is judiciously deployed to bridge these gaps. But not the Tinubu government.
“A few days ago, I called on President Tinubu to resign from office for incompetence, lack of capacity, lack of compassion and failure to improve on his campaign promises. Some thought the call was perhaps excessive. But with the daily revelations of pervasive corruption in this administration and its total lack of commitment to the welfare and security of Nigerian citizens, the only sensible action is for President Tinubu to resign from office. The Tinubu regime’s collapse of elementary forms of due process and the growing evidence of rampant looting of Nigerian public finances further reinforce the case for greater accountability. “It is now time for Nigerian citizens to rise within the law and hold this administration to account.