APC dismisses Atiku's claim on 'slush fund' budget vote

Nigeria's ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has strongly refuted claims made by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. Abubakar alleged that the 2026 Service-Wide Vote (SWV) was a fund set aside to finance President Bola Tinubu's 2027 re-election campaign.

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You would think that a former Vice President, a man with the longest-standing ambition to be president of Nigeria, would understand the concept and instrument of a ‘Service-Wide Vote’, an elementary principle of public finance.

The APC described Abubakar's assertion as either mischievous or a sign of ignorance regarding public finance principles. Party spokesman Felix Morka stated that a Service-Wide Vote is a long-established budgetary tool designed to cover government-wide obligations and unforeseen expenses after the annual budget is approved. He emphasized that such contingency arrangements are common in major economies worldwide and are not secret or illegal slush funds as alleged.

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A Service-Wide Vote is a long-established and widely used budgetary mechanism designed to cater for government-wide obligations and unforeseen expenditures that arise after the annual budget has been passed.

Morka also criticized Abubakar's own record, calling his attempt to lecture on fiscal responsibility ironic given his history, which the APC described as "mired in corruption and profligacy." The party accused Abubakar of being a "petty peddler of fake news" and a "doomsday narrator" who has never presented a clear vision for Nigeria's development.

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A Service-Wide Vote is not a secret fund or an illegal slush account, as Atiku has baselessly and recklessly alleged.

The APC highlighted several initiatives by the Tinubu administration as evidence of fiscal responsibility. These include the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), the implementation of a new national minimum wage, a Consumer Credit Scheme, and the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Initiative. The party also pointed to increased investments in infrastructure, healthcare, agriculture, and job creation, alongside tax reforms aimed at easing the burden on low-income citizens.

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As a serial presidential contestant, Atiku has never once articulated a clear vision or coherent plan for Nigeria’s development but has remained a petty peddler of fake news and doomsday narratives.