Nigeria’s growing debt burden has pushed the House of Representatives to open a fresh investigation into billions of naira allegedly owed to the Federal Government by ministries, agencies, private companies, and other entities.
Lawmakers on Thursday set up an ad-hoc committee to trace the outstanding debts, examine previous recovery efforts, and recommend ways to recover the funds. The panel will be chaired by Oluwole Oke, who represents Obokun/Oriade Federal Constituency of Osun State.
The decision followed a motion sponsored by Salisu Yusuf and five other lawmakers during plenary.
While presenting the motion, Yusuf warned that Nigeria’s worsening debt profile and weak revenue generation were becoming a serious threat to the economy.
He noted that the country’s public debt had climbed to ₦153.29 trillion as of September 2025, driven largely by domestic borrowing and the depreciation of the naira.
According to him, debt servicing alone consumed nearly half of government revenue within the first nine months of 2025.
He argued that although successive administrations had focused heavily on borrowing and debt repayment, far less attention had been given to recovering huge sums still owed to the Federal Government.
“The Federal Government is owed huge sums both within and outside the country,” Yusuf said, adding that the liabilities involve state and non-state actors, including several Ministries, Departments, and Agencies.
The lawmaker also referenced the Presidential Initiative on Continuous Audit, established in 2015 to improve transparency and accountability in government finances, saying the continued failure to recover public funds was worsening Nigeria’s fiscal challenges.
He warned that allowing such debts to remain unpaid encourages abuse of public resources at a time the country is struggling with rising debt obligations, infrastructure deficits, and economic pressure.
Following deliberations, the House mandated the committee to carry out a full-scale investigation and submit its report within four weeks.
The probe is expected to shine a spotlight on unpaid taxes, unremitted operating surpluses, royalty obligations, judgment debts, and other liabilities reportedly owed to the government by various organisations and institutions.
The move comes amid growing concern from economists and policy groups over Nigeria’s rising debt servicing costs and shrinking revenue base, with many urging the government to prioritise recovering existing funds instead of increasing pressure on citizens through new taxes.
