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Don’t Pass Tinubu’s Proposed 2025 Budget, It’s Anti-People – PDP Tells NASS

Published by Akinwale Fakinlede on December 19th, 2024.

Don’t Pass Tinubu’s Proposed 2025 Budget, It’s Anti-People – PDP Tells NASS

The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has expressed strong opposition to President Bola Tinubu’s proposed ₦47.9 trillion budget for 2025, labeling it as detrimental to the populace. The party has called upon the National Assembly to exercise its constitutional authority to reject the budget in its current form.

In a statement released by PDP National Publicity Secretary Debo Ologunagba, the party criticized the budget for lacking transparency and failing to provide a clear breakdown between capital and recurrent expenditures. The PDP contends that the budget is filled with unverified economic statistics and unfulfilled campaign promises, lacking concrete strategies to address pressing issues such as insecurity, economic revitalization, job creation, and the reduction of living costs.

The PDP also questioned President Tinubu’s claims of an 85% performance rate for the 2024 budget, noting the absence of detailed disclosures. Additionally, the party described as “ludicrous” the President’s projections that the 2025 budget would reduce inflation from 34.6% to 15% and improve the Naira’s exchange rate from ₦1,700 to ₦1,500 per dollar, especially given the nation’s substantial debt and lack of tangible investments in productive sectors.

The PDP warned that the proposed budget, with its projected ₦13 trillion deficit and heavy reliance on taxation, would further burden already impoverished citizens and businesses. The party argued that this approach would shrink the economy, deter both domestic and foreign investment, and exacerbate unemployment and inflation rates, thereby pushing more Nigerians into poverty and heightening insecurity.

In light of these concerns, the PDP has urged the National Assembly to reject the 2025 budget as presented and to restructure it to prioritize economic growth and the welfare of Nigerians. The party emphasized the need for the budget to reflect the real needs of the populace by making provisions critical to economic recovery and social stability.