Atiku Questions ₦12.8tn Service-Wide Vote, Demands Tinubu Explain 1,918% Budget Surge

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has questioned the Federal Government's allocation of ₦12.8 trillion to the Service-Wide Vote (SWV) in the 2026 Appropriation Act, calling on President Bola Tinubu's administration to provide a detailed explanation for what he described as an unprecedented increase in the budgetary provision.

Atiku, who is the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate for the 2027 election, said the Service-Wide Vote rose from ₦638 billion in the 2025 budget to ₦12.8 trillion in the 2026 Appropriation Act, representing an increase of about 1,918 per cent within a year.

In a statement issued on Monday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, the former Vice President described the development as a serious transparency issue and alleged that the 2026 budget represents "the most brazen assault on transparency and fiscal responsibility in Nigeria's democratic history."

According to Atiku, the concentration of a significant share of the national budget in a handful of government institutions raises questions that deserve public answers.

He also claimed that about 84 per cent of the 2026 budget is concentrated in 10 ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs).

Atiku argued that the Federal Government owes Nigerians a clear explanation for the sharp increase in the Service-Wide Vote.

"President Tinubu owes Nigerians a detailed explanation. No responsible government can expect citizens to accept a nineteen-fold increase in a notoriously opaque budgetary provision without disclosing exactly who will spend the money, what it will be spent on, and under what legal authority," the statement said.

He further argued that if the government fails to provide adequate clarification, the allocation could attract public suspicion.

"Should the Tinubu administration fail to come clean on this unprecedented ₦12.8 trillion Service-Wide Vote, Nigerians would be justified in suspecting that these enormous sums are being stashed away to bankroll the APC's political machinery and President Tinubu's re-election bid in 2027. A government with nothing to hide does not conceal trillions behind opaque budgetary headings," he stated.

The former Vice President also questioned what he described as disparities in personnel allocations within the budget.

He noted that while the Federal Ministry of Finance reportedly has a personnel allocation of ₦54.8 billion, the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning carries a ₦2.19 trillion personnel provision under the Service-Wide Vote.

"Who exactly are the workers earning ₦2.19 trillion? Where are they? What offices do they occupy? What agencies do they belong to? This is not budgeting; it is budgetary absurdity. Nigerians deserve to see the payroll," he said.

Atiku further argued that the allocation to the Service-Wide Vote exceeds the combined budgets of key sectors such as education, defence and agriculture, warning that such a concentration of funds under a broadly classified budget heading requires greater public scrutiny.

He maintained that every unexplained allocation reduces resources available for critical sectors, including healthcare, education, security, food production and economic development.

The ADC presidential candidate called on the National Assembly to immediately commence a comprehensive, line-by-line investigation into all allocations under the Service-Wide Vote, particularly the ₦2.19 trillion personnel provision.

According to him, restoring public confidence in Nigeria's budgeting process requires full transparency and accountability.

"A government that cannot explain where trillions of naira are going has forfeited the moral authority to demand sacrifice from its citizens. It is time to open the books, expose the truth, and restore integrity to Nigeria's budgeting process. The Nigerian people deserve nothing less," the statement added.

The Federal Government had not responded to Atiku's claims as of the time of filing this report.