ABEOKUTA — Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has issued a sharp critique of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic borrowing policies, warning that national debt accumulation poses a generational threat far more damaging than physical illness.
Speaking at the Ajibosin Platform public forum titled “Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Solve Grassroots Problems and Accelerate National Development” in Abeokuta, Ogun State, on Friday, October 30, 2026, the former head of state directly countered President Tinubu’s previous assertion that government borrowing is not inherently negative.
“And for anybody to say debt is no leprosy, is absolute nonsense,” Obasanjo declared. “Debt is worse than leprosy. Because leprosy destroys only one person. Debt destroys generations.”
The elder statesman’s remarks came as a response to comments made by President Tinubu earlier in the year defending external and domestic fiscal borrowing. The current administration had argued that borrowing remains a legitimate tool for infrastructure expansion provided the state maintains the capacity to service its obligations.
Bemoaning the historic depreciation of the national currency, Obasanjo recalled that when he established his farm 47 years ago, the naira exchanged at ₦1 to $1.85.
“Forty-seven years ago. What has Nigeria done in 47 years that we now have ₦1,500 to the dollar? What have we done?” Obasanjo questioned, challenging the economic acumen and capacity of the current political leadership to navigate the nation out of structural distress.
The former president also criticized Nigeria’s reliance on multilateral financial institutions like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), arguing that their structural frameworks were not originally engineered to address indigenous African realities. He urged policymakers to stop uncritically implementing economic models prescribed by foreign-trained experts and focus instead on tailored, grassroots-oriented reforms.
Neither the Presidency nor the Federal Ministry of Information has issued a formal response to Chief Obasanjo’s observations as of late Friday night.
