Former presidential spokesman and journalist, Reuben Abati, has dismissed remarks by former Kogi West Senator Dino Melaye suggesting that President Bola Tinubu’s administration may soon resort to borrowing from fintech firms such as Opay and Moniepoint.
Speaking on Arise Television’s Morning Show on Tuesday, Abati said such claims were unrealistic, stressing that the scale of resources required by the Federal Government far exceeds what fintech companies can provide.
“I’m surprised that Melaye is talking about borrowing from Moniepoint and Opay. I don’t think that is the kind of money the Nigerian government will be looking for in terms of capacity,” Abati said.
Melaye, a chieftain of the opposition African Democratic Congress (ADC), had accused the Tinubu administration of reckless borrowing and questioned the President’s claim that Nigeria had already met its 2025 revenue projections.
Abati, however, defended Tinubu’s fiscal approach, noting that the government had improved non-oil revenue generation and avoided borrowing from Nigerian banks. He further clarified issues surrounding the controversial “Presidential yacht,” which Melaye claimed was acquired at taxpayers’ expense for Tinubu’s personal use.
“The claim that Tinubu has a yacht paid for by Nigerian taxpayers is not true. When this issue came up, it was from the Buhari administration’s 2023 Supplementary Budget. The Navy later explained it was a vessel for naval operations, nicknamed a ‘Presidential yacht’, not a luxury item for the President,” Abati explained.
He added that while opposition figures like Melaye often make sensational claims, it was important for public debates on governance to remain fact-based.
