Atiku Abubakar Critiques Tinubu's FAAC Economic Claims

Atiku Abubakar, the former Vice President of Nigeria, rejected President Tinubu's portrayal of recent FAAC distributions as an economic success, referring to it as a "money illusion." In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku argued that the increasing naira figures announced monthly do not reflect real prosperity, as they mask significant losses in value due to inflation, currency depreciation, and state debt. He compared FAAC distributions from 2019, which totaled approximately ₦7.85 trillion (about $25.6 billion), to 2025, where the naira figure rose to around ₦21.9 trillion but the dollar equivalent fell to about $14.6 billion, indicating a more than 40% drop in underlying value.

Atiku also noted that the current minimum wage of ₦70,000 is worth only about $53, down from $83 in 2019. He raised concerns about the fiscal condition of state governments, citing a collective debt of about ₦5.3 trillion among 12 states.

Atiku called for a reevaluation of economic performance based on the real impact on Nigerians' lives.