Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of failing the test of fiscal transparency while imposing excessive taxes and levies on Nigerians and businesses.
Atiku, a former vice-president, said the government’s response to a United States assessment that Nigeria failed to meet minimum fiscal transparency requirements amounted to an attempt to dismiss a serious concern rather than address it.
In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said the US assessment identified deficiencies in Nigeria’s budget information, revenue and expenditure reporting, audit independence and public access to procurement information.
He argued that the administration should respond to the concerns by making relevant financial records available to the public.
According to Atiku, the situation is particularly troubling given the burden of multiple taxes and levies on businesses.
He cited the Central Bank of Nigeria’s July 2026 Business Expectations Survey, which showed that 70.8 per cent of respondents identified high and multiple taxation as their biggest business constraint.
Atiku accused the government of applying different standards to large corporations and local businesses, noting that tax incentives had been offered to major oil operators to encourage investment.
He argued that similar consideration should be extended to Nigerian manufacturers, small and medium-sized enterprises, traders and entrepreneurs facing multiple taxes and levies.
“You cannot demand first-class compliance from taxpayers while offering third-class accountability in return,” he said.
The ADC presidential candidate also challenged the Tinubu administration to publish details of how funds saved from the removal of the petrol subsidy had been spent.
He questioned the continued delay in providing a detailed account of the savings, asking the government to disclose the projects and programmes funded with the resources.
Atiku also called for the publication of financial details relating to the rehabilitation of government-owned refineries, including the amounts spent, contractors involved and work delivered.
He said transparency, rather than official statements, should be used to counter concerns about fiscal accountability.
“If the U.S. assessment is wrong, disprove it with the records. If it is incomplete, complete the picture with the accounts,” Atiku said.
He maintained that Nigerians had endured significant economic hardship since the removal of the fuel subsidy and deserved greater accountability from government.
Atiku further accused the administration of failing to deliver meaningful relief despite the economic reforms it has introduced, arguing that the effects of the alleged accountability failures were being felt by households and businesses across the country.
“The answer to an accusation of opacity is transparency, not another press statement,” he said.
Atiku urged the government to publish relevant financial records and demonstrate how public resources had been utilised, warning that Nigeria could not afford what he described as another four years of “failure disguised as reform.”
