N1trn Debt Bombshell: PDP Exposes Kaduna’s Debt Burden

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Kaduna State, Shehu Bawa popularly known as Shehu ABG, has raised the alarm over the state’s debt burden, alleging that its total liabilities have climbed to about N1 trillion, while millions of residents continue to grapple with poverty and poor access to essential services.

Bawa, who spoke at a one-on-one policy dialogue organised by The Agenda for Political and Electoral Participation in Kaduna on Wednesday, accused successive administrations of accumulating debts without adequately addressing the socioeconomic challenges confronting the people.

Comparing the records of the PDP and All Progressives Congress (APC) administrations, the candidate said Kaduna’s external debt rose from $226.37 million between 1999 and 2015, when the PDP governed the state, to $684.29 million between 2015 and 2025 under the APC.

He also put domestic debt at N49.85 billion during the PDP era and N84.64 billion under the APC, arguing that the figures raised serious questions about the state’s borrowing and the benefits accruing to residents.

The former member of the House of Representatives, who represented Kaduna North Federal Constituency from 2011 to 2015, linked the debt burden to the wider development challenges facing the state, citing a multidimensional poverty figure of 8.04 million people and a poverty rate of 74.7 per cent in his presentation.

“Why I am making this comparison is that I am a PDP candidate, and my manifesto is guided by the PDP manifesto.

“Nobody should come and tell me that one governor borrowed and another did not.

“There should be continuity in every government,” he said, adding that his administration would take responsibility for implementing the party’s programme if elected.

Bawa identified security, education, healthcare, shared prosperity, infrastructure, agriculture and good governance as the pillars of his proposed administration, promising to protect lives and property and work towards ensuring that no child is denied access to education.

On healthcare, he pledged to equip health facilities, support medical personnel and improve existing services, while promising to draw on his entrepreneurial experience, including involvement in a solar assembly plant outside Nigeria, to promote innovation and economic opportunities in Kaduna.

He also proposed establishing agricultural cooperatives and bringing experts from Brazil, India and China to train young people in modern farming methods.

On infrastructure, he said his administration would prioritise road maintenance and street lighting, while pledging transparency, accountability and people-centred governance.

Bawa, born in 1973 and a Geography graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, made the submissions at the dialogue organised under the Partnership for Issues-Based Campaigns in Nigeria (PICaN), a platform seeking to shift election campaigns from divisive rhetoric and money politics towards practical solutions to citizens’ problems ahead of the 2027 general elections.

However, the N1 trillion debt claim has not been independently verified as of the time of filing this report.