The 2025 capital budget has again been extended. The extension of the capital budget implementation period for the fourth time has been approved by the National Assembly. The expiration deadline, which was previously the 30th of September 2026, has now been moved to the 31st of December 2026. The National Assembly approved this extension on Tuesday, 29th September 2026, just a day before the aforesaid deadline. This was done to give agencies, departments, and ministries more time to accomplish projects contained in the 2025 appropriation act.
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The Democratic and Leadership Alliance has voiced its thoughts concerning the decision made by the National Assembly to move the implementation of the capital component of the 2025 budget to the 31st of December 2026. The head of media and publicity of the Democratic and Leadership Alliance, National Campaign Council, Dr. Tosin Odeyemi, in a statement on Wednesday, said the constant extension demonstrates what the party described as deterioration in economic and fiscal conditions. He further said that the party was mainly concerned about the pending 2024 budget, which is yet to be fully financed, while the execution of the 2026 budget is having issues being implemented. “We are more concerned that this is the fourth time the implementation of this same budget has been extended, and with the latest one, it shows that the Bola Tinubu-led administration has continued to fail Nigerians in even the most basic metric of governance,” he said.
Dr Tosin also said the recurring extension could make it harder to execute the budget and lead to the rollover of pending capital expenditure. He said the imminent economic and fiscal catastrophe the administration is welcoming means the capital component of the 2026 budget, over N35tn, will be extended to 2027, resulting in running at least two budgets at a time. Nigerians are urged by the spokespersons for DLA to request greater accountability from the federal government over its handling of public funds.
Odeyemi also faulted President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for continually accusing the state governors and continuously telling Nigerians that the state governors are to be blamed for the increased allocations after fuel subsidy removal. He said the president has repeatedly blamed governors without telling Nigerians what happens to the larger percentage of the nation’s resources or what he does with them. He also mentioned the loans that were collected in respect of budget implementation, one of which has been suffering unwarranted extensions under his administration.
Odeyemi claimed that the administration did not have a proper understanding of fiscal management and questioned its ability to direct the country. He stated that President Tinubu has continued to portray a lack of fundamental fiscal knowledge and labeled him “unfit” to govern the country. The spokesman urged Nigerians, saying that their votes should not be cast in favor of Tinubu in the forthcoming 2027 presidential election, and that the extension of Tinubu’s administration beyond May 2027 will put the country in total shambles, and that Nigerians must all work together to ensure he doesn’t emerge victorious in the forthcoming elections to prevent this.
