The Senate Committee on Appropriations has sharply interrogated Finance Minister Wale Edun and National Revenue Service Chairman Zacch Adedeji over Nigeria’s rising N152 trillion debt burden and persistent unrealistic budget assumptions that have plagued fiscal planning.
At a tense session chaired by Senator Solomon Adeola, lawmakers questioned the credibility of revenue assumptions underpinning the 2026 budget, warning that significant variances between projected and realised oil revenues in previous years must not be repeated.
Adeola stressed that the document before the committee was prepared by the executive and must stand the test of realism and accountability, urging the minister to clearly state whether the executive has full confidence in the assumptions driving the 2026 fiscal framework.
In his defense, Edun defended the oil production benchmark of 1.84 million barrels per day embedded in the budget, describing it as a deliberate “stretch target” designed to drive improved output.
“It is a stretch target so that the authorities do not settle for less. But we are careful not to spend what we do not have,” he said.
However, Adedeji shifted the focus to what he described as the root cause of recurrent budget funding challenges—unrealistic revenue assumptions.
“Budget efficiency is not in the quantum of the budget; it is in what you can carry out,” he said, warning that planning expenditure on the basis of inflated income projections inevitably created distortions and implementation gaps.
According to Adedeji, “If we think we have 10 naira and plan as if we have 100 naira, we will create problems for ourselves. The starting point must be realistic assumptions”.
The NRS chairman disclosed that the Federal Government’s 2024 and 2025 budgets failed because the projections were unrealistic.
Senators raised concerns about unpaid contractors, a controversial centralised payment system, inadequate capital releases, and a rising debt profile as major areas of concern.
Former Governor of Edo State, Senator Adams Oshiomhole said though he did not envy Edun’s position, as lawmakers, they should still be able to explain to voters why capital projects were not being executed. He noted, “How do we create jobs when capital projects are not implemented? The system fails to generate jobs once the capital budget doesn’t perform”.
The Minister of State for Finance, Doris Uzoka-Anite, disclosed that the Federal Government had started releasing funds for capital components of the 2024 budget, with payments for outstanding 2024 capital projects starting Thursday.
The N58.18 trillion 2026 budget proposal, presented by President Bola Tinubu in December, allocates N5.41 trillion to defence and security, representing approximately 9.3 percent of total expenditure.
There are indications that the Senate may slash the N58 trillion proposed for the 2026 fiscal year due to poor implementation and unrealistic benchmarks in previous budgets.
