Atiku Queries Fresh ₦4tn Power Sector Bond, Demands Transparency

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has expressed concern over the Federal Government's plan to raise a ₦4 trillion bond to settle outstanding debts in the power sector, describing it as a 'racket dressed up as reform'. Through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku questioned the whereabouts of previously raised funds and demanded a full public account before any fresh bond is issued. He stated that the government's repeated announcements of debt-clearing initiatives without disclosing how previous interventions were utilised has led to a lack of trust among Nigerians. Atiku recalled that the government had announced several debt-clearing initiatives for the power sector, including a ₦590 billion power sector bond in December 2025 and a ₦501 billion bond in January 2026, but the debts remain largely unsettled. He cited comments from the Association of Power Generation Companies' Chief Executive Officer, Joy Ogaji, who stated that the ₦501 billion bond raised to settle part of the debt had yet to translate into payments to creditors. Atiku argued that the government's pattern of announcing a crisis, borrowing to address it, celebrating the intervention, and then returning for fresh borrowing without proper disclosure would trigger investigations in any serious democracy. He warned that the consequences of the persistent liquidity crisis in the electricity sector are being borne by ordinary Nigerians through poor power supply, rising energy costs, and increasing dependence on alternative power sources. Atiku called on the federal government to provide a comprehensive breakdown of all funds raised under the various debt-settlement arrangements, including how much was raised, where the funds were domiciled, who received payment, what debts were settled, and why fresh borrowing has become necessary despite repeated assurances that the problem was being addressed. The former Vice President stressed that accountability, rather than repeated announcements, should be the measure of government performance, and that the government must disclose details of all monies raised under various power-sector debt settlement programmes to reassure Nigerians that the power sector is not being used as a conduit for financial manipulation. Nigeria's power sector has struggled for years with mounting debts owed to generation companies and gas suppliers, a situation that industry operators say has constrained investment, threatened electricity supply, and deepened the sector's liquidity crisis. Successive administrations have introduced intervention funds and financing arrangements aimed at stabilising the market, but concerns over transparency and the effectiveness of such interventions have persisted.