The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has described President Bola Tinubu’s approval of the cancellation of $1.42 billion and ₦5.57 trillion in legacy debts owed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) as an impeachable offence.
Additionally, the party accused the National Assembly of enabling what it called a clear violation of constitutional provisions on public revenue.
Party Raises Constitutional Red Flags
Recently submitted documents to the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) showed that the President authorised the removal of the debts from official Federation Account records.
According to the documents, officials justified the action as a reconciliation exercise with sector regulators. However, the debts covered liabilities accumulated up to December 31, 2024.
ADC Questions Executive Authority
Reports showed that the cancelled obligations included production-sharing contracts, domestic supply duties, royalty receivables and other legacy balances.
However, the ADC argued that such obligations form part of federation revenues and therefore cannot be erased through executive directives alone.
‘No Legislative Approval,’ ADC Insists
In a statement issued on Saturday, ADC National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi said the scale of the cancellation raised serious concerns.
Specifically, he noted that 96 percent of dollar-denominated debts and 88 percent of naira obligations were written off without legislative approval. Consequently, the party said the process violated constitutional safeguards.
ADC Faults National Assembly
Citing Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution, the ADC stressed that all oil-related revenues must flow into the Federation Account. As a result, the party said the write-off reduced funds due to state and local governments, weakening their fiscal capacity. Moreover, it accused the National Assembly of failing to exercise proper oversight.
Call for Accountability
The ADC warned that unchecked executive actions could set a dangerous precedent in public finance management. Therefore, it argued that such constitutional breaches provide sufficient grounds for impeachment proceedings. Ultimately, the party said Nigeria must remain governed by law, not executive discretion.
