The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has vehemently condemned the latest request by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for legislative approval to secure over $21.5 billion in foreign loans and ₦758 billion in domestic bonds, describing the move as a direct and disastrous attempt to push Nigeria further into a toxic debt trap.
In a scathing statement released to the media on Wednesday, the frontline civil rights advocacy group denounced the proposed external borrowing plan and pension bond issuance as the clearest sign yet that the current administration is mortgaging the future of over 200 million Nigerians in a reckless and irresponsible pursuit of unsustainable debt.
“This is as bad as it can get. Nigeria is being plunged into another round of unconscionable, destructive, and criminal foreign borrowing spree by a government that has failed in transparency, accountability, and economic vision,” HURIWA stated.
The group lambasted the National Assembly, particularly the House of Representatives under Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, for failing to assert legislative independence or protect Nigerians from economic harm, accusing the federal lawmakers of serving as a rubber stamp for anti-people policies.
“It is no longer news that the National Assembly has become a glorified department of the Presidency—utterly bereft of willpower to interrogate executive excesses. Their deafening silence and predictable acquiescence to this loan proposal have destroyed any pretence of checks and balances. The 10th National Assembly has shown that it cannot be trusted to protect Nigerians from economic slavery,” HURIWA declared.
President Tinubu had on Tuesday transmitted three letters to the National Assembly requesting approval for a borrowing plan involving $21.5 billion, €2.19 billion, ¥15 billion, and a €65 million grant, in addition to a ₦757.98 billion bond issuance aimed at settling outstanding pension liabilities. The loans, according to the President, are meant to fund critical infrastructure, create jobs, and stabilise the economy in light of subsidy removal and dwindling domestic resources.
However, HURIWA rubbished these justifications, arguing that previous loans taken by successive administrations have failed to translate into tangible benefits for the masses.
“Nigerians have witnessed over a decade of ballooning debt with zero impact on infrastructure, zero impact on education, zero impact on healthcare, and worsening poverty indices. What we are seeing is the entrenchment of a political class that borrows to loot and steals with impunity, while mortgaging generations unborn into economic bondage.
“According to data from the Debt Management Office (DMO), Nigeria’s total public debt stock stood at ₦97.34 trillion as of the end of 2023, and is expected to surpass ₦100 trillion with this new tranche of loans—further compounding the country’s already crippling debt servicing burden,” the association said.
HURIWA warned that debt servicing has already consumed over 90% of Nigeria’s revenue, leaving little or nothing for capital investment, social welfare, or national development. It described Tinubu’s latest borrowing spree as a calculated move to enslave Nigeria to international creditors, likening it to “auctioning national sovereignty to the highest bidder.”
The rights group further questioned the rationale for seeking loans when Nigeria is bleeding under runaway inflation, widespread insecurity, and a currency crisis that has battered the naira against foreign currencies.
“Borrowing is not development. What we have today is the worst form of economic colonialism disguised as financial assistance. These foreign loans are not free—they come with deadly conditions, and worse still, they are stolen, looted, and pocketed by political criminals who don’t care about the suffering of ordinary Nigerians,” HURIWA warned.
It stressed that the justification for the loans, including claims of boosting infrastructure, job creation, and exchange rate stability, are deceptive narratives crafted to mask the ruling elite’s insatiable greed.
“Where are the results of previous loans? What happened to the billions borrowed under past administrations for railways, power, agriculture, and roads? How many youths have been lifted from poverty? How many rural communities now have clean water, electricity, or functioning hospitals?” HURIWA queried.
The group called on Nigerians in their millions to rise in civil resistance and denounce the proposed borrowing plans, warning that silence in the face of this looming catastrophe would amount to national complicity in economic genocide.
“This is the time for patriotic Nigerians—students, labour unions, market women, youth groups, the clergy, professional bodies, and civil society—to take a united stand. We must reject this killer loan and demand that our government first account for existing debts. We cannot remain docile while our country is being auctioned to foreign lenders,” the statement added.
HURIWA also urged international financial institutions to halt disbursement of further credit to Nigeria until there is proof of fiscal transparency, accountability, and responsible governance. It advocated for the adoption of stringent legal sanctions, including life imprisonment, for public officials who abuse public funds or contract loans without parliamentary and public scrutiny.
“Enough is enough. Nigeria cannot continue this cycle of borrow, steal, and suffer. If the National Assembly fails to act, the people must,” HURIWA concluded.
