The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) for the 2027 general election, Peter Obi, has accused the administration of President Bola Tinubu of gross financial mismanagement, following revelations by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that about N8.83 trillion in public expenditure undertaken in 2025 was not reflected in the federal budget.

Obi, in a statement issued on Sunday, described the IMF’s findings as further evidence of what he called “grand corruption” under the current administration, warning that the alleged disregard for established public finance rules poses a serious threat to Nigeria’s national security and stability.

According to him, the expenditure was neither appropriated in the budget nor subjected to legislative oversight or administrative scrutiny.

“The recent report from the IMF consultation further raises concerns about the scale of grand corruption under the Tinubu government. The IMF now reveals that about N8.83 trillion in expenditure undertaken in 2025 is not reflected in the budget. This expenditure is not budgeted and is therefore not under legislative oversight or administrative scrutiny. This is horrible,” Obi said.

He stressed the significance of the amount, noting that it represents about two per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and more than 35 per cent of the country’s N23.96 trillion capital budget for 2025. He added that the sum also exceeds the combined allocations to the education and health sectors.

Obi argued that if properly utilised and transparently managed, the funds could have transformed critical sectors of the economy.

“If such an amount is properly used and accounted for, it could transform Nigeria’s public health and education sectors. It could create hundreds of cottage industries that can provide jobs for thousands of graduates and build a solid foundation for economic development. But we cannot account for it,” he said.

The former Anambra State governor maintained that the issue was not an isolated occurrence but part of what he described as a recurring pattern of corruption under the present administration.

“This is a pattern of grand corruption that has become part of this administration. We have a lot to worry about regarding the state of corruption under President Tinubu. The sort of corruption that is ingrained in total disregard of elementary rules of public finance management poses a grave danger to national security and the stability of the Nigerian state,” he stated.

He further alleged that the “capture of the Nigerian state and the plunder of its resources” were undermining governance, worsening poverty and increasing the risk of state failure.

Obi also described the APC-led Federal Government as “grossly corrupt, incompetent, and insensitive,” arguing that the unaccounted expenditure should have been channelled into addressing pressing infrastructure and social development challenges.

Reiterating an earlier position, the NDC presidential candidate renewed his call for President Tinubu to resign, citing what he described as incompetence, lack of compassion and failure to fulfil campaign promises.

“A few days ago, I called on President Tinubu to resign from office for incompetence, lack of capacity, lack of compassion, and failure to improve on his campaign promises. Some people thought perhaps the call was excessive. But with the daily revelations of pervasive corruption in this administration and its total lack of commitment to the welfare and security of Nigerian citizens, the only reasonable action is for President Tinubu to resign from office,” Obi said.

“It is now time for Nigerian citizens to rise within the law and hold this administration to account.”