Former aide to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Reno Omokri, has labelled the former presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, an “economic illiterate” for daring to criticize President Bola Tinubu over his excessive borrowings.

The former Anambra State governor had recently lambasted Tinubu’s administration’s penchant for reckless borrowing without accountability.

While knocking the present administration’s borrowing spree, Obi noted that with the latest approval for another loan by the National Assembly, Nigeria’s debt now stands at N187 trillion with palpable fear that it might climb to N200 trillion before the end of the year.

However, in a post on his X handle on Tuesday, Omokri who describes himself as Obi’s number one albatross and ruffler of the feathers of his supporters who are known as “Obidients”, accused the LP presidential candidate of lying about the debts Nigeria has accumulated under Tinubu.

He claimed it was a blatant lie that Tinubu is about to borrow an additional $21 billion, €2.2 billion, and ¥15 billion to add to the country’s rising debt profile.

“Peter Obi released a statement filled with lies, innuendoes, and half-truths. The gist of the statement was that President Bola Tinubu is about to borrow $21 billion and skyrocket Nigeria’s debt,” Omokri wrote.

Continuing, he said:

“Mr. Obi’s post shows that he is economically illiterate and does not have sufficient knowledge of how the economy works. This is no big surprise; we recently saw his very disappointing WASCCE result, along with his Second-Class degree in Philosophy. So, his lack of depth is understandable. He is a trader, not a leader.

“Senate of the National Assembly did not approve an additional $21 billion, €2.2 billion, ¥15 billion of external borrowing for the 2025–2026 fiscal cycle.

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“That is a lie from a man described as ‘Gbajue’ by Nigeria’s only Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka.

“What the Senate approved is a Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF). President Bola Tinubu is not about to borrow $21 billion, €2.2 billion, ¥15 billion. That is a figment of the intellectually undeveloped mind of Peter.

“The MTEF contains the borrowing plan for both the Federal and State Governments for the next three years. In other words, the $21 billion is what the Federal Government and the 36 states can borrow over the next three years—not what they will borrow, but what they can borrow.

“They are not even likely to take those loans. It is just a framework for what is possible. For example, while the MTEF provides for extensive borrowings in 2025, only $1.23 billion will actually be borrowed. And that $1.23 billion will be borrowed by both the Federal and state governments from all geopolitical zones.

“The MTEF only shows possible borrowing that Nigeria is entitled to based on agreements with our external borrowing partners, which must align with the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007 and the Debt Management Office. (Establishment) Act 2003.

“The Borrowing Rolling Plan ties possible borrowings by the Federal and State Governments to specific projects. For actual borrowings, Nigerians should look at the budgets of both the Federal and State Governments.

“Citizens of Nigeria must note that Peter Obi is a liar. He is desperate to be President of Nigeria, and because he lacks economic depth, he will resort to lies.

“One of his recent lies was his claim that President Bola Tinubu had borrowed more money than Presidents Yar’adua, Jonathan, and Buhari combined,” he concluded.

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