(TRUEPOINTNEWS Abuja) African Democratic Congress (ADC) has condemned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s approval of the cancellation of legacy debts owed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) to the Federation Account, describing the move as unconstitutional and detrimental to state and local government revenues.
In a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the opposition party said the decision to write off the debts violated Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which governs the management and distribution of revenues accruing to the Federation Account.
According to the ADC, official documents presented to the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) indicate that the President approved the removal of approximately $1.42 billion and ₦5.57 trillion in legacy NNPC debts from the Federation Account following a reconciliation exercise with sector regulators. The debts reportedly covered liabilities accumulated up to 31 December 2024, including those arising from production sharing contracts, domestic supply obligations, royalty receivables and other legacy balances.
The party alleged that nearly 96 per cent of the dollar-denominated debts and 88 per cent of the naira-denominated obligations were written off through executive directive without legislative approval.
“The purported justification of reconciliation cannot override constitutional requirements for revenue sharing,” the ADC said, warning that the write-off effectively shrinks the revenue base constitutionally due to states and local governments.
The party stressed that the Federation Account is not subject to executive discretion, arguing that no president has the unilateral authority to cancel revenues due to the federation without recourse to the National Assembly.
The ADC also criticised the National Assembly for what it described as silence in the face of an alleged constitutional breach, warning that such actions undermine Nigeria’s federal structure and fiscal accountability.
Reiterating its position, the party said executive action cannot override the Constitution and insisted that all revenues due to the federation must be paid into the Federation Account for equitable distribution among the three tiers of government.
The ADC concluded by calling for strict adherence to constitutional provisions, insisting that the Federation Account belongs to all tiers of government and cannot be altered at the discretion of the Federal Executive.
