A Nation at Crossroads: Budget Fraud Outpaces Education, Health, and Security Funding [by Peter Obi]

 

Nigeria’s long-standing battle with corruption has reached a new and alarming height, following revelations that ₦7 trillion worth of dubious projects were inserted into the 2025 national budget. Civic tech organization BudgIT unveiled the scandal, sparking widespread outrage and renewing calls for systemic reform and accountability.

Political observers and reform advocates say the scale of the budget manipulation is staggering and symptomatic of deeper rot within Nigeria’s public finance system. The questionable allocations eclipse the combined budgets of four critical ministries—Education, Health, Humanitarian Affairs, and Agriculture—whose total funding amounts to ₦6.896 trillion. This discovery has left many questioning the country’s priorities in the face of dire socio-economic conditions.

Education, a sector grappling with nearly 20 million out-of-school children, received ₦3.52 trillion. Healthcare, already burdened with crumbling infrastructure and child malnutrition, was allocated ₦2.48 trillion. The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation was assigned ₦260 billion, while the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security received ₦636.08 billion—together still falling short of the ₦7 trillion allegedly funneled into fraudulent budget lines.

The fallout from this revelation has been swift and severe. Critics argue that the scandal exposes how Nigeria’s development is being consistently undermined by fiscal recklessness and a brazen lack of accountability. National security, another sector in dire need of funding due to widespread terrorism and insecurity, was allocated ₦6.1 trillion—less than the amount allegedly misappropriated.

Voices demanding change have grown louder, with many echoing sentiments that Nigeria can no longer afford to operate as a crime scene. One prominent voice described the situation as “a distressing confirmation of long-held fears,” asserting that entrenched corruption continues to cripple the country’s growth prospects. He warned that the ₦7 trillion figure is likely just a fragment of a larger iceberg of financial mismanagement.

The consequences of this budgetary manipulation are visible across the country: decaying schools, overwhelmed hospitals, rampant hunger, and rising insecurity. Small and medium enterprises, which are essential to stimulating grassroots development, continue to be neglected as national funds are siphoned into opaque and unaccountable channels.

Urgency now surrounds the call to aggressively dismantle the systems that enable such corruption. Reform advocates stress that Nigeria must embrace transparency, root out impunity, and redirect national resources toward critical sectors that touch citizens’ lives most directly. The need for strategic investment in education, health, poverty alleviation, and agriculture has never been more pressing.

Despite the bleak picture, hope persists among reformists who believe a new Nigeria is possible—one built on accountability, integrity, and a genuine commitment to national progress. They argue that the current moment, though sobering, is also an opportunity to catalyze long-overdue structural change.

The ₦7 trillion scandal is not just a number—it is a symbol of the impunity that has derailed a nation. Unless confronted decisively, it will continue to rob millions of Nigerians of the future they deserve.

[Source]