The Labour Party (LP) has called on the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, to use their offices to stop President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s latest borrowing request.
The party’s Interim National Publicity Secretary, Tony Akeni, made the appeal in a statement issued in Abuja, warning that Nigeria’s mounting debt profile has reached alarming and unsustainable levels.
Akeni cited figures from the Debt Management Office (DMO) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), noting that the country’s public debt rose sharply from ₦121.7 trillion in December 2024 to ₦149.39 trillion in March 2025.
He said the rapid increase means Nigeria’s debt-to-GDP ratio has climbed to 52 per cent, far above the 40 per cent threshold permitted under the nation’s fiscal responsibility laws.
“For Nigerians to appreciate Speaker Abbas’ sense of alarm, one must put in perspective the facts,” the statement read.
“What is more frightening is that in the same three-month period, the debt-to-GDP ratio resulting from these debts rose to 52%, which is far above the highest safe limit of 40% set by Nigeria’s own fiscal laws,” Akeni added.
The LP spokesman argued that President Tinubu’s fresh loan request from the World Bank, in the face of rising debt, inflation, and widespread poverty, demonstrated what he described as the government’s insensitivity to the plight of ordinary Nigerians.
The opposition party urged the National Assembly leadership to reject further borrowing and instead compel the executive to adopt fiscal discipline, cut waste, and prioritise economic reforms that would stimulate production and reduce dependence on loans.
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