What is this ₦8.8 trillion shadow treasury people are talking about?
The IMF has exposed that government has access to ₦8.8 trillion kept entirely outside public view, beyond legislative oversight, and at the disposal of those who hold executive power. This money should have been transparently appropriated, competitively allocated, and deployed in ways that create jobs, reduce the cost of capital, and strengthen the naira. Instead, it has been removed from the productive economy.
Where this comes from
Article on X Article by @atiku on X · https://x.com/atiku/status/2073404094681588038 2026-07-04 ›
The IMF has now exposed that narrative as a big fat lie. While the poor were told to bleed, the government maintained access to a ₦8.8 trillion shadow treasury, entirely outside public view, entirely beyond legislative oversight, and entirely at the disposal of those who hold executive power. The interest rates crushing Nigerian businesses, the weak Naira destroying Nigerian savings, and the economic stagnation hollowing out Nigerian households are not the unavoidable consequences of global headwinds. They are, at least in part, the direct result of a government that has removed from the productive economy ₦8.8 trillion that should have been transparently appropriated, competitively allocated, and deployed in ways that create jobs, reduce the cost of capital, and strengthen the naira. This explains why contractors are owed and civil servants are not paid their salaries.