IMF Budget Omission Report Reveals Deep Corruption Concerns, Says Atiku

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has linked the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) disclosure of omitted public expenditure worth two per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to what he described as a growing pattern of institutional corruption under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

Speaking through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate said the IMF revelation, combined with the controversy surrounding the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), raises serious concerns about transparency and accountability in government.

According to Atiku, Nigerians deserve answers regarding the reported omission from the national budget process.

“The Constitution is not a book of suggestions. Section 80 is unequivocal: no money shall be withdrawn from the Consolidated Revenue Fund except in the manner prescribed by the National Assembly. Budgetary appropriation is not a ceremonial exercise; it is the legal authority upon which every kobo of public expenditure rests,” he said.

He added, “If, as the IMF has revealed, expenditure amounting to two per cent of Nigeria’s GDP was omitted from the budget process, then Nigerians are entitled to one simple question: Who stole the missing two per cent of our GDP? This is no longer an accounting discrepancy. It is a constitutional, legal and moral scandal.”

Atiku argued that the issue goes beyond an accounting error, insisting that public officials responsible for the spending must be identified.

“Money does not simply disappear from a national budget. Somebody authorised it. Somebody approved it. Somebody spent it. Somebody benefited from it. Nigerians deserve to know who those people are,” he declared.

He further stated that the controversy surrounding the PFIPC and the IMF findings appear connected.

“The discovery that a fictitious agency found its way into official government processes and budgetary allocations should alarm every patriotic Nigerian. Now, the IMF tells us that expenditure equivalent to two per cent of our GDP was kept outside the budget. These are not disconnected events. Together, they point to a dangerous culture of institutional corruption,” he said.

Atiku also questioned the government’s spending priorities, claiming that while the Federal Ministry of Health allegedly received only ₦36 million out of more than ₦218 billion budgeted for health interventions, the PFIPC reportedly secured an allocation of about ₦1.3 billion.

“Nothing better illustrates the warped priorities of this administration than a government that starves hospitals and healthcare programmes of funds while ghost agencies somehow find billions waiting for them. This is not fiscal management; it is institutionalised corruption,” he stated.

The former vice president called on the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, to clarify how the PFIPC was officially recognised by government institutions.

He also referenced allegations by Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, who reportedly claimed that the controversy intensified after he refused a request for a 48 per cent kickback linked to the agency’s proposed ₦27.3 billion take-off grant.

“These are grave allegations that cannot be dismissed with press releases or propaganda. They demand an immediate, transparent and independent investigation,” Atiku said.

He urged the Auditor-General of the Federation, the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committees, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the allegations and ensure accountability.

“No administration should assume that because it controls the instruments of power, it also controls the truth. The books must be opened. Every naira must be traced. Every expenditure must be justified. Every official found culpable must be held accountable,” he added.

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