Atiku Criticizes Proposed Budget for 2025, Says it is inadequate.

The former Vice President, who was the people’s Democratic party presidential candidate for 2023 Election Atiku Aburbakar, identified the 2025 Budget with the issues of weak budgetary foundation, high debt servicing costs, bloated recurrent expenditure, insufficient capital investment and regressive tax policies.

In his statement, Atiku noted that the N48 trillion budget, with a revenue forecast of N35 trillion and a deficit exceeding N13 trillion, represents a continuation of business-as-usual fiscal practices by the APC-led administration.

Therefore, Atiku criticized the planned VAT increase from 7.5% to 10%, calling it a regressive measure that will worsen the cost-of-living crisis and stifle economic growth.

Hereby increasing or imposing additional tasks and burdens on already struggling people, while they fail to address governance inefficiencies, the government risks stifling domestic consumption and further deepening economic hardship.

To enhance budget’s credibility the administration must focus on the reduction of inefficiencies in Government operations and tackle the economy challenges, how to sustain a long term productive economy rather than borrowing and unnecessary spending.

Nevertheless, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, to cut the proposed budget of N9.4bn on travels, refreshment/meals, and foodstuff/catering materials for the presidency, and the proposed N344.85bn for the lawmakers, and use the savings to address the budget deficit.