ADC Chieftain Alleges N800 Billion FAAC Diversion By Tinubu Administration, Citing World Bank Report

The African Democratic Congress has raised serious allegations against the administration of President Bola Tinubu, claiming that a staggering N800 billion from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has been diverted to finance preparations for the 2027 general elections.

The explosive claim was made by a prominent chieftain of the ADC, Ladan Salihu, during an interview on Arise Television. Salihu asserted that the figures were not manufactured but were extracted from existing reports linked to the World Bank, in addition to information obtained from credible sources within the government. “These figures were not concocted; they were not manufactured. These figures were extracted from an existing international agency report, the World Bank. We have our sources in government; even as they think they have control of the structure of governance, within the system, we have people that feed us credible information,” Salihu told ARISE NEWS.

The ADC chieftain emphasised the gravity of the situation, describing the funds as belonging to a sovereign nation already burdened by intense hardship, poverty, and deprivation. He called for a full disclosure of the figures and a forensic audit to determine the veracity of the claims. “We are saying there should be a forensic audit that will tell Nigerians whether these figures are debatable,” he urged.

Salihu maintained that the allegations were a warning to the Nigerian public and that evidence would be compiled and presented comprehensively, rejecting any notion that the ADC was making frivolous accusations. “We have put Nigerians on notice. The evidence will be collated comprehensively and we will present it. We are not just making fly-about allegations,” he said.

The accusations have been met with swift denial from a presidential aide. Abdullahi Yakasai, speaking on the same Arise News platform, categorically rejected the claims, describing them as unfounded and politically driven. He argued that the figures being circulated were based on a misinterpretation of official financial records. “These are just allegations and we have clearly denied them. The federal government has categorically rejected the claims,” Yakasai stated.

Yakasai explained that the deductions being referenced are standard financial obligations, including statutory payments and other approved disbursements from the Federation Account. He pointed out that the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, had previously clarified that there is no secret diversion of public funds for political purposes. The presidential aide further challenged the ADC to provide verifiable evidence to support its position, shifting the burden of proof onto the opposition party.

This controversy is the latest in a series of debates over the management of Nigeria’s federation revenue. In April, the Federal Ministry of Finance had to dismiss claims of hidden spending following the release of a World Bank Nigeria Development Update. The ministry explained that deductions from the FAAC, which some reports had characterized as waste or missing funds, are actually legitimate fiscal obligations, including statutory transfers, savings, security-related expenditures, and refunds to government agencies.

The government had also noted that reforms implemented in early 2026, including an executive order to safeguard the remittance of petroleum revenues, are already addressing concerns around deductions and are expected to improve transparency, increasing revenues available to all tiers of government.

Nevertheless, the ADC has doubled down on its demand for an investigation. The party maintains that if the allegations are true, the diversion of funds for political purposes would represent a direct theft of resources meant for development and the welfare of citizens. The opposition party has called for an independent probe into the matter, insisting that FAAC allocations are constitutionally intended to fund development, salaries, healthcare, education, and security, not the re-election plans of a single individual.

As the debate intensifies, the N800 billion allegation has further heated up the political atmosphere, exposing deep fiscal and political fault lines ahead of the 2027 elections.

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