Atiku Reacts To 2025 Proposed Budget

In a statement released on Sunday, Atiku criticized the N48 trillion budget, which forecasts N35 trillion in revenue and projects a deficit of over N13 trillion. He described the budget as a continuation of the “business-as-usual” fiscal policies under the APC-led government.

The budget includes plans for more than N13 trillion in new borrowings, with N9 trillion allocated for direct borrowing and N4 trillion earmarked for project-specific loans.

Atiku argued that this borrowing strategy mirrors the approach of previous administrations, further inflating public debt and heightening risks related to rising interest payments and foreign exchange fluctuations.

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The 2023 presidential candidate for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) outlined several concerns with the budget, including a fragile budgetary structure, escalating debt servicing costs, excessive recurrent expenditure, insufficient capital investment, and regressive tax policies.

Atiku particularly criticized the proposed increase in VAT from 7.5% to 10%, describing it as a harmful measure that will exacerbate the cost-of-living crisis and hinder economic growth.