Relentless Corruption!’ – Peter Obi Decries Budget Padding, Calls for Urgent National Rebirth”

Peter Obi Decries Budget Padding, Says Nigeria Remains Trapped in Deep-Rooted Corruption

The 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has once again emphasized the urgent need to eradicate corruption in Nigeria.

Reacting to recent revelations surrounding alleged budget padding in the 2025 national budget, Obi described Nigeria as a nation persistently plagued by systemic corruption.

His statement follows a damning report by BudgIT, a civic and transparency-focused NGO, which uncovered over 11,000 questionable projects worth ₦6.93 trillion dubiously inserted into the 2025 budget.

Taking to his (formerly Twitter) account on Wednesday, Obi stressed that Nigeria cannot make meaningful progress unless entrenched corruption is tackled head-on. He argued that the figures disclosed by BudgIT likely represent only a portion of the actual funds misappropriated.

“I have always insisted that for Nigeria to progress, we must stop functioning like a crime scene and focus on real development,” Obi stated. “This entrenched corruption—pervasive and deeply rooted—must be eradicated if we hope for any genuine change.”

He described BudgIT’s findings as disturbing and a strong reminder of the urgent need to combat misappropriation and fiscal recklessness. According to Obi, these financial anomalies continue to undermine critical national investments in health, education, and poverty alleviation.

“How else do we explain the shocking revelation of nearly ₦7 trillion worth of suspicious projects padded into the national budget? I strongly believe that this figure is merely a glimpse of the broader mismanagement,” he lamented.

Obi further noted that the alleged ₦7 trillion in padded projects surpasses the total budgets of several key ministries combined:

• Ministry of Education – ₦3.52 trillion

• Ministry of Health – ₦2.48 trillion

• Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation – ₦260 billion

• Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security – ₦636.08 billion

“These are ministries critical to the wellbeing and progress of our nation. Yet, their entire allocations are overshadowed by fraudulent insertions. We must urgently redirect our resources to serve the people, not a few corrupt interests,” Obi concluded.