Atiku, who is also the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, said the money was buried under the Service-Wide Vote, SWV, in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning. He described the provision as a deliberate move to hide public funds from scrutiny.
According to the former VP, the 2026 Appropriation Act represents the worst attack on transparency and fiscal discipline since Nigeria returned to democracy. He argued that the way resources were distributed this year raises serious questions about accountability.
A major part of his concern centers on how concentrated the budget is. Atiku stated that 84 percent of the entire 2026 federal budget was allocated to only 10 Ministries, Departments and Agencies. He said within that structure, a staggering ₦12.8 trillion was set aside under the Service-Wide Vote and domiciled in the budget office.
He described the SWV as a notorious budget line that has long been criticized for lack of clarity. The concern now, he said, is that the amount placed there has grown beyond anything seen before.
For context, the Service-Wide Vote in the 2025 budget was ₦638 billion. In the new 2026 budget, that same heading has jumped to ₦12.8 trillion. That represents an increase of about 1,918 percent within 12 months.
Atiku said such an increase cannot be explained away without proper justification. He demanded that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu provide Nigerians with full details on the allocation.
“President Tinubu owes Nigerians a detailed explanation,” the statement read. “No responsible government can expect citizens to accept a nineteen-fold increase in a notoriously opaque budgetary provision without disclosing exactly who will spend the money, what it will be spent on, and under what legal authority.”
The ADC candidate further warned that failure to provide clarity would fuel suspicion. He suggested that the huge sum could be set aside for political purposes rather than public service delivery.
“Should the Tinubu administration fail to come clean on this unprecedented ₦12.8 trillion Service-Wide Vote, Nigerians would be justified in suspecting that these enormous sums are being stashed away to bankroll the APC’s political machinery and President Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027,” Atiku said.
“A government with nothing to hide does not conceal trillions behind opaque budgetary headings,” he added.
Budget analysts have often flagged the Service-Wide Vote as a problem area because it is used for expenditures that cut across multiple MDAs, but rarely comes with itemized breakdowns. In previous years, civil society groups and lawmakers have called for reforms to make the vote more transparent.
The sharp rise from ₦638 billion to ₦12.8 trillion has now put the issue back in the spotlight. Critics argue that without a line-by-line explanation, citizens cannot track how the money will be used or who will authorize the spending.
Supporters of the administration have not yet issued a detailed response to the allegation. Government officials are expected to address the matter when the National Assembly resumes debate on budget implementation.
Atiku’s statement has already sparked reactions on social media, with many Nigerians demanding that the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning publish a breakdown of the SWV. Others called on the National Assembly to invite the Minister to explain the rationale behind the increase.
For now, the controversy adds to ongoing debates about fiscal transparency under the current administration. With 2027 elections approaching, opposition figures say Nigerians deserve to know how public resources are being planned and spent.
The former Vice President insisted that transparency is not optional in a democracy. He urged the government to act quickly to avoid further loss of public trust.
