World Bank Report Reveals ‘Alarming Gaps’ In Nigeria’s Finances — Atiku

Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has raised concerns over Nigeria’s fiscal management following a recent report by the World Bank, describing the findings as “deeply troubling and unacceptable.”

In a statement issued on Wednesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said the report highlighted a contradiction in the country’s financial reality, where increased revenue has not translated into improved welfare for citizens.

“What the World Bank has revealed is both alarming and unacceptable. Nigeria is earning more revenue today, yet the Nigerian people are receiving less benefit from it. This contradiction points not just to inefficiency, but to a system vulnerable to abuse, leakage, and the possible diversion of public funds,” he said.

Atiku further alleged that the administration of President Bola Tinubu operates a non-transparent financial system that encourages corruption.

“The report confirms what many Nigerians have long suspected: that the administration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu operates an opaque financial structure that enables systemic corruption,” he added.

The former vice president pointed to what he described as excessive deductions from national revenue before distribution through the Federation Account, noting that such practices reduce funds available for development at all levels of government.

“When large portions of national income are deducted at source, outside full legislative scrutiny, it creates fertile ground for opacity, unaccounted spending, and financial recklessness. That is how nations lose track of their own wealth,” Atiku said.

He warned that the impact of these fiscal practices was already being felt, citing declining investments in critical sectors and worsening living conditions for Nigerians.

“This is not just a technical fiscal issue, it is a moral one. A government cannot ask citizens to endure painful economic reforms while the gains of those reforms are trapped in a system that lacks transparency and accountability,” he stated.

Aligning with recommendations from the World Bank, Atiku called for urgent reforms to improve transparency and accountability in public finance management. He urged that all government agency funding be integrated into the formal budgetary process and subjected to legislative oversight.

“All agency funding must be brought under the formal budgetary process. Cost-of-collection mechanisms must be reviewed and reduced, and the National Assembly must exercise full oversight over every naira earned by this country. Anything less will only sustain a system where opacity thrives and public trust is eroded,” he said.

He concluded with a warning about the country’s economic trajectory, stressing that rising revenues should not coexist with widespread poverty.

“We cannot continue on a path where rising revenues coexist with deepening poverty. When the books are full but the people are empty, it raises serious questions about where the money is truly going. The purpose of governance is not to accumulate figures, but to improve lives and that purpose is clearly being defeated,” he stated.