ADC says Tinubu lacks power to cancel NNPC debt, calls action impeachable

The African Democratic Congress has criticised President Bola Tinubu over the cancellation of debts owed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited to the Federation Account Allocation Committee.

The presidency recently approved the write off of about 1.42 billion dollars and 5.57 trillion naira in outstanding obligations after a reconciliation of records between NNPCL and FAAC.

In a statement on Saturday, the party’s spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi, said the president lacks the constitutional authority to unilaterally cancel the debt without consulting state governments or obtaining approval from the National Assembly.

Abdullahi said the action was taken without legislative backing or clear constitutional justification, adding that reconciliation of accounts cannot override constitutional provisions on revenue sharing.

According to him, the decision removes long standing liabilities from public accounts but reduces revenues meant for distribution to states and local governments.

He cited Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution, which mandates that all revenues due to the federation, including oil related receipts, must be paid into the federation account for sharing among the three tiers of government.

Abdullahi accused the president of repeated constitutional violations and expressed concern over what he described as the National Assembly’s silence on the matter.

The ADC spokesperson described the debt cancellation as an assault on the constitution and said it was sufficient grounds for impeachment proceedings.

He stressed that the federation account belongs to all tiers of government and cannot be subjected to the discretion of the federal executive.