Atiku Hits Buhari Again: ‘Facts Don’t Lie…Obasanjo And I Paid Off Nigeria’s Entire Foreign Debt’

For the second time in 24 hours, former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, has criticised what he called “needless borrowing” habit of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

The former vice president has insisted that with the right leadership, the federal government can manage its finances such that it would not require foreign loans to run the country.

Atiku, in a tweet on Friday, claimed that the administration of former president Olusegun Obasanjo, which he served in as vice president, “paid off” Nigeria’s entire foreign debt within eight years in office.

“Between 1999 and 2007, Nigeria paid off her entire foreign debt while maintaining an unprecedented 6% annual GDP growth. Those were periods of national restoration, and I am very proud of the work President Obasanjo and I did for this nation we care so much for. Facts don’t lie,” he said.

Between 1999 and 2007, Nigeria paid off her entire foreign debt while maintaining an unprecedented 6% annual GDP growth. Those were periods of national restoration, and I am very proud of the work President Obasanjo and I did for this nation we care so much for. Facts don't lie.

— Atiku Abubakar (@atiku) October 2, 2020

The 2019 presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had in his message to Nigerians on the country’s 60th independence anniversary, on Thursday, cautioned President Buhari against trading Nigeria’s sovereignty to foreign creditors.

“As a nation, we asserted our independence in our infancy by lending to other nations. We must be careful not to lose the hard-won independence of our heroes’ past.

“By learning to live within our means, we can put a stop to the needless borrowings that threaten our economic independence,” the former vice president had said.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, had on Thursday defended the foreign loans being taken by the federal government.

Amaechi spoke during a special programme organized by Channels TV to mark the country’s diamond jubilee celebration.

“The President (Muhammadu Buhari) allows us to borrow and we are borrowing to develop and things will change.

“It wasn’t like this before. We had money to construct this railway. The total fund that we needed to complete the entire railway in the country was about $36 to $40billion.

“We had this kind of money when we were selling crude at $110 to $120 per barrel. Now, the money is no longer there,” he had said.