Dead Reckoning: Tinubu’s 200 Trillion Naira Debt Crisis
One year after the fuel subsidy was removed, Nigeria’s public debt has surged from ₦147 trillion in December 2025 to at least ₦155 trillion by April 2026. Projections now point toward ₦180–195 trillion before year’s end. The 2026 budget earmarks more for debt service than for capital projects, education and health combined. This debt spiral was driven by design, not accident. Removing subsidies shifted the burden onto citizens while government borrowed to pay previous loans. The ₦3.3 trillion “legacy debt” for the power sector adds to the cycle without addressing corruption, inefficiency or regulatory capture. Official growth figures, lower inflation and a stabilized naira mask how benefits accrue to a connected few. Ordinary Nigerians face soaring transport and food costs, persistent unemployment and a wave of emigration. Future generations will inherit heavier interest bills and deeper austerity. As each administration inherits the debt burden, democracy’s short memory lets leaders defer pain and shift blame. The ship rides lower in the water. The voyage into deeper fiscal waters continues with no safe harbor in sight.
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