The 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 action as a violation of Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The party warned that the decision is not only unconstitutional but also financially damaging to states and local governments that depend on statutory allocations from the Federation Account.
In a statement issued on Saturday in Abuja, the ADC’s Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said the President approved the removal of substantial NNPC liabilities from public accounts without legislative approval, contrary to constitutional provisions.
According to the party, official documents presented to the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) showed that the President authorised the cancellation of approximately $1.42 billion and N5.57 trillion in legacy debts owed by NNPC Ltd after a reconciliation of records with regulators. The directive, it said, covers outstanding liabilities accumulated up to December 31, 2024, including obligations arising from production sharing contracts, domestic supply obligations, royalty receivables and other legacy balances.
The ADC alleged that nearly 96 per cent of the dollar-denominated debts and 88 per cent of the naira-denominated debts were written off through an executive directive, without parliamentary approval or clear constitutional authority.
“This so-called justification of ‘reconciliation’ cannot lawfully override constitutional requirements for revenue sharing,” the party said. “The action effectively removes long-standing liabilities from public accounts, but at the cost of shrinking the revenue base constitutionally distributable to states and local governments.”
The party stressed that under Section 162 of the Constitution, all revenues due to the Federation, including oil sector receipts and related obligations, must be paid into the Federation Account for distribution among the three tiers of government.
“The Federation Account is not subject to executive discretion. No President has the unilateral authority to cancel constitutionally due revenues, and any cancellation that reduces funds due to states and local governments without legislative backing is unconstitutional,” the statement added.
The ADC further accused President Tinubu of repeatedly breaching the Constitution and criticised the National Assembly for what it described as silence in the face of a serious constitutional violation.
“We have said it before and we will say it again: President Tinubu has repeatedly violated the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. More troubling is the apparent collusion or wilful surrender by the National Assembly,” the party said, adding that such actions ordinarily should warrant impeachment proceedings.
“As a nation governed by laws and not by men, no President can override what the Constitution protects. The Federation Account belongs to all tiers of government and cannot be subjected to the discretion of the Federal Executive,” the ADC concluded.
