The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar, has called for an immediate investigation into what he described as unrecorded public expenditure amounting to about N8.8tn, alleging that the funds were spent outside the Federal Government's official budgetary framework.
In a statement issued on Saturday, the former Vice-President said his demand followed the findings of the International Monetary Fund's Article IV consultation on Nigeria, which he claimed indicated that public expenditure equivalent to about two per cent of the country's Gross Domestic Product was not reflected in official budget documents.
Atiku alleged that the expenditure represented a major breach of fiscal transparency and accountability, insisting that Nigerians deserved a full explanation of how the funds were utilised.
According to him, the reported spending suggested that major government projects were executed outside the statutory budget process, thereby escaping legislative oversight, procurement regulations and independent audit.
The ADC presidential candidate alleged that the development reflected a pattern of fiscal management that denied the public access to information on government spending.
He further claimed that the alleged off-budget expenditure, alongside what he described as the unlawful deduction of N800bn from the statutory allocations of state governments, pointed to the creation of a political war chest ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Atiku accused the President Bola Tinubu administration of using public resources to advance political interests, an allegation for which he did not provide evidence beyond his interpretation of the IMF report.
The former vice-president also linked the issue to the recent controversy surrounding the appropriation of funds for the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, arguing that both developments raised questions about transparency in public finance management.
He accused the Federal Government of imposing economic hardship on Nigerians through subsidy removal, exchange rate reforms and rising borrowing costs while allegedly operating what he termed a "shadow treasury."
According to Atiku, the funds in question could have been deployed to stimulate economic growth, support businesses, stabilise the naira and create employment if they had been transparently appropriated.
He consequently called on the National Assembly to convene an emergency investigative hearing into the IMF findings.
The former vice-president also urged the Auditor-General of the Federation to conduct a comprehensive audit of all alleged off-budget expenditures and publish the outcome.
He further demanded that the Federal Government provide a detailed account of every expenditure allegedly incurred outside the approved budget, including the projects executed, contractors engaged and officials who authorised the spending.
Atiku also called for the immediate refund of the alleged N800bn deducted from state government allocations and urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and other relevant agencies to investigate both the alleged off-budget spending and the deductions.
He appealed to civil society organisations, the media, professional bodies and the international community to press for accountability over the issues raised.
The Federal Government had yet to respond to Atiku's allegations as of the time of filing this report.
The IMF report referenced by the former vice-president has also not been independently interpreted in this report beyond the claims contained in his statement.
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