President Tinubu Mocks Debt Concerns, Admits Insecurity Is a Plot Against Him, Then Does Absolutely Nothing About Either

President Bola Tinubu has triggered a double barrel storm of outrage after making two separate but equally alarming statements within days of each other. On the economy, he told Nigerians that borrowing is not leprosy and that his administration will keep taking loans. On national security, he admitted that his political enemies are deliberately using the worsening insecurity to force him out of office, then immediately pivoted to his plan to campaign for a second term.

The combination of both declarations has painted a picture of a leader who appears more concerned with defending his policy choices and securing his political future than with the suffering of ordinary citizens.

Speaking first on the nation’s growing debt profile, Tinubu dismissed fears over record borrowing.

If we have to borrow money, we will, because borrowing is not leprosy; we just have to work hard to be able to repay it, he said.

The President argued that many nations rely on debt to fund infrastructure and that the stigma attached to borrowing should be dropped. This came as Nigeria’s public debt stock hit approximately 159 trillion naira by the end of 2025, driven by new borrowings and naira devaluation. The government recently secured a 516 million dollar external loan for the Sokoto–Badagry Superhighway.

Then, in a separate address while receiving stakeholders from Plateau State, the President made an even more startling revelation.

You are playing to the hand of agents, including my own enemies, who want to use insecurity to get rid of me, Tinubu said.

He described himself as a very stubborn politician who refuses to step aside. But instead of outlining a plan to crush the insurgents, bandits, and kidnappers terrorizing the country, he declared,

I just refuse to go. And I will campaign for my second term.

Nigerians have reacted with fury. The president has essentially admitted that he knows insecurity is being weaponized against him. He has identified the enemy. Yet his response is not to declare total war on terrorists or sack security chiefs. It is to talk about the next election.

The logic is baffling. If your enemies are using insecurity to get rid of you, why will you not first get rid of both the enemies and the insecurity before thinking about a second term campaign? Families who have lost loved ones to bandits are not waiting for a campaign rally. Communities displaced by violence are not interested in the president’s political stubbornness. They want action.

READ MORE: LASU Discriminates Against Non Indigenes, Defies Nigerian Constitution With New Admission Policy

Meanwhile, economic experts have raised red flags over debt servicing, which is projected to consume a significant portion of government revenue in the coming years. Nigerians argue that while strategic borrowing is a legitimate tool, Nigeria risks a fiscal crisis if borrowed funds are not channeled into productive assets. But the President appears unmoved, insisting that borrowing is no disease.

Together, these two positions reveal a leader focused on defending his record and his political ambition while the country bleeds from insecurity and drowns in debt. Many Nigerians describes the situation as a failure par excellence. “The president sees the fire, names the arsonist, then asks for another term to watch the house burn,” they said.

As the 2027 election cycle draws closer, the debate over Tinubu’s priorities will only intensify. For now, the message from the presidency is clear: keep borrowing, ignore the bloodshed, and trust the stubborn politician to campaign again.

About The Author

West Africa Weekly

author

See author's posts