By Joy Yesufu
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has criticised the Federal Government’s proposed $1 billion social protection programme, describing it as a belated response to the economic hardship Nigerians have experienced under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The opposition party also questioned the funding, management, and monitoring framework of the programme, particularly as the country approaches the 2027 general elections.
In a statement on Thursday by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC said Nigerians had endured rising food, transportation, and energy costs over the past three years, accusing the government of introducing major relief measures only after the effects of its economic reforms had worsened.
The party argued that the proposed intervention was similar to the targeted production subsidy earlier advocated by its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, as a means of reducing the cost of living.
“This is precisely what our presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has been saying in proposing a targeted production subsidy to bring down the cost of living,” Abdullahi said.
The ADC, however, demanded greater transparency over the proposed $1 billion programme, asking the government to disclose how it would be financed and administered, as well as the mechanisms that would be used to monitor its implementation.
The party also questioned the utilisation of more than N600 billion reportedly spent on cash transfers to over 10 million households over the past three years.
It demanded details of the beneficiaries and evidence of the impact of the payments, while also questioning the reliability and integrity of the social register used to identify beneficiaries.
The opposition party further raised concerns over the proposed N40,000 “shock-response payment” to vulnerable households, suggesting that such a payment could be susceptible to political manipulation ahead of the 2027 elections.
“A government whose so-called reform has destroyed purchasing power through higher food, fuel, transport, and energy costs cannot now return with a one-off N40,000 per family, which it cynically tagged ‘shock-response payment’,” the party said.
The ADC also questioned the constitutional and administrative basis for the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, to unveil a Federal Government social protection programme involving $1 billion.
While acknowledging the need for government intervention to support vulnerable Nigerians, the party maintained that temporary relief measures could not substitute for policies capable of boosting production, restoring purchasing power, and improving living standards.
The ADC called on the Federal Government to provide detailed information on the proposed programme, including its funding arrangements, beneficiaries, implementation framework, and accountability mechanisms.
The party said genuine social protection should go beyond one-off financial assistance to address the structural causes of poverty and economic hardship.
“If the Tinubu administration has suddenly discovered that Nigerians need protection from the cost of its failed reforms, then perhaps the first thing it should do is admit that Atiku was right: reform without relief is not courage; it is cruelty,” the ADC said.
