Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has strongly criticized the 2026 Federal Budget, calling it the most blatant violation of fiscal transparency in Nigeria's democratic history. In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku raised urgent questions over a massive increase in the Service-Wide Vote (SWV) and demanded a thorough investigation by the National Assembly.
Service-Wide Vote Surges from ₦638 Billion to ₦12.8 Trillion
Atiku highlighted that the Service-Wide Vote in the 2026 Appropriation Act ballooned from ₦638 billion in 2025 to ₦12.8 trillion, an increase of approximately 1,918 percent within a single budget cycle. He described this as unprecedented and urged President Bola Tinubu to provide a detailed explanation. "No responsible government can expect citizens to accept a nineteen-fold increase in a notoriously opaque budgetary provision without disclosing exactly who will spend the money, what it will be spent on, and under what legal authority," Atiku said.
The former presidential candidate also noted that 84 percent of the entire 2026 budget is concentrated within just 10 Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), with the bulk warehoused under the Service-Wide Vote in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning. He warned that this amounts to a deliberate framework for unaccountable public spending.
Political Motivations Suspected
Atiku raised suspicions about the political motivations behind the allocation, suggesting that the funds might be used to fund the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and President Tinubu's anticipated 2027 re-election campaign. He stressed that failure to account for the funds would leave Nigerians justified in concluding that the money is being positioned for partisan purposes.
Payroll Questions Over ₦2.19 Trillion Personnel Provision
Atiku also drew attention to a striking disparity in personnel allocations. The Federal Ministry of Finance carries a personnel allocation of only ₦54.8 billion, while the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning holds a ₦2.19 trillion personnel provision under the Service-Wide Vote. "Who exactly are the workers earning ₦2.19 trillion? Where are they? What offices do they occupy? What agencies do they belong to? This is not budgeting; it is budgetary absurdity. Nigerians deserve to see the payroll," he said.
He further noted that combined allocations to education, defence, and agriculture fall below what has been placed under the Service-Wide Vote, describing this as evidence of misplaced priorities at a time Nigerians are already enduring severe economic hardship. "The 2026 Appropriation Act is fast becoming a document that reeks of fiscal manipulation. Every unexplained trillion is a trillion diverted from classrooms, hospitals, security, food production and economic growth," Atiku stated.
Call for National Assembly Probe
Atiku called on the National Assembly to set aside partisan interests and immediately begin a comprehensive, line-by-line review of every allocation under the Service-Wide Vote, particularly the ₦2.19 trillion personnel figure. He demanded full disclosure of beneficiaries, legal basis, and spending frameworks. "A government that cannot explain where trillions of naira are going has forfeited the moral authority to demand sacrifice from its citizens," he concluded.
