Presidency blasts Dino Melaye, calling his debt critique “noise, not knowledge,” while defending Nigeria’s borrowing as sustainable and strategic

Presidency blasts Dino Melaye for what it termed “noise, not knowledge,” following the former senator’s mockery of Nigeria’s borrowing practices on national television.

Also read: Melaye Slams Tinubu Over Soaring Borrowing Rates

In a statement on Tuesday, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare, accused Melaye of prioritizing spectacle over substance.

Dare specifically referenced Melaye’s jabs about Nigeria supposedly borrowing from fintech firms like OPay and Moniepoint.

Citing Debt Management Office (DMO) figures, Dare clarified that Nigeria’s total public debt stood at ₦149.39 trillion as of March 31, 2025. He stressed that the sharp rise compared to 2024 was largely due to naira depreciation, not fresh loans.

“When the currency adjusts, the naira value of existing external debt rises, whether or not new loans are taken,” Dare explained.

He added that Nigeria’s debt-to-GDP ratio remains between 40% and 45%, well below South Africa’s 70% and Ghana’s 90%, making the country’s debt levels sustainable. According to him, the real challenge lies in raising revenue — an area where reforms are beginning to show results.

The Presidency defended borrowing as a “legitimate tool for financing growth and reforms” and urged that sustainability, not sensational soundbites, should drive debate.

The statement, titled “Dino Melaye’s Debt Drama: Noise, Not Knowledge,” dismissed the senator’s comments on a proposed \$1.7 billion World Bank loan and the Senate’s approval of \$21 billion in external borrowing.

Melaye, speaking on Arise Television on September 8, 2025, had described the borrowing scale as “unprecedented” and accused the government of contradicting its pledge to cut waste, even pointing to controversial spending such as the alleged purchase of a presidential yacht.

Dare said Melaye’s remarks echoed “exaggerated” warnings from the African Democratic Congress (ADC), which predicted that Nigeria’s debt could top ₦200 trillion by the end of 2025.

According to the Presidency, borrowing is tied to strategic investments in infrastructure, health, education, and security, under the Medium-Term External Borrowing Plan approved in July 2025.

The statement also referenced reforms like fuel subsidy removal, exchange rate unification, and July’s GDP rebasing, which lowered Nigeria’s debt-to-GDP ratio to around 39%, just below the 40% fiscal threshold.

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“The administration will not be distracted by theatrics,” Dare concluded, urging Melaye to engage with facts rather than “entertainment politics.”