Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, has described the latest revelations by the Association of Power Generation Companies, APGC, as the final collapse of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.
In a statement by his spokesperson, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku noted the startling disclosure by the executive secretary of the APGC, Dr Joy Ogaji, that the much-publicised N501 billion bond has not even been fully disbursed, despite repeated government claims to the contrary.
Atiku said this development raises grave questions about transparency, fiscal discipline and the credibility of Tinubu’s administration’s economic management.
Even more damning is her challenge to the federal government to publish the complete list of beneficiaries, the amounts paid to each generation company and the dates of such payments if indeed the money has been released.
Ogaji’s vivid description of the government’s token payment as “like rubbing oil on a crying child’s mouth to imply that he had eaten” perfectly captures the Tinubu administration’s approach to governance: grand announcements, impressive figures, glossy headlines, and very little substance.
“For months, Nigerians have been inundated with announcements of bond after bond supposedly floated to clear power sector debts. First came the promise of a N590 billion intervention. Then came the N501 billion bond, celebrated as a major breakthrough. Before long, the country was told about a multi-trillion-naira settlement programme. Today, another debt package is being contemplated while the very companies the government claims to have settled insist that the liabilities have continued to grow.
“This
