2026 Budget: Atiku, APC trade words over N12.8tn Service-Wide Vote

The controversy surrounding the N12.8 trillion Service-Wide Vote (SWV) in the 2026 Appropriation Act intensified on Wednesday as the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the media office of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar exchanged accusations over the size, purpose and transparency of the allocation.

While the APC described Mr Atiku’s criticism as misleading and based on a poor understanding of public finance, the former Vice President’s media office challenged the Federal Government to justify the sharp increase in the allocation and disclose how the funds would be spent.

The controversy began after the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, called on the National Assembly to conduct a comprehensive, line-by-line investigation into all allocations under the Service-Wide Vote, particularly the N2.19 trillion earmarked for personnel.

In a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications, Phrank Shaibu, Mr Atiku urged lawmakers to demand full disclosure of the beneficiaries, legal justification and expenditure framework for every allocation.

“A government that cannot account for how trillions of naira are being spent has lost the moral standing to ask its citizens to make sacrifices.

“The time has come to open the books, reveal the facts and restore transparency and accountability to Nigeria’s budgeting process. Nigerians deserve nothing less,” he said.

APC defends Service-Wide Vote

Reacting in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, the APC dismissed Atiku’s claims as baseless and politically motivated.

The ruling party argued that the former Vice President failed to provide evidence to support his allegations and accused him of attempting to distract Nigerians from what it described as the achievements of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

The APC maintained that the Service-Wide Vote is a long-established budgetary mechanism designed to fund government-wide obligations and unforeseen expenditures.

“A Service-Wide Vote is not a secret fund or an illegal slush account, as Atiku has baselessly and recklessly alleged,” the party stated.

The APC also criticised Atiku’s record in public office, accusing him of lacking a clear development agenda and spreading misinformation.

According to the party, the Tinubu administration has demonstrated fiscal responsibility through initiatives such as the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), the new national minimum wage, the Consumer Credit Scheme, the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, tax reforms, investments in infrastructure, healthcare and agriculture.

Atiku’s media office fires back

Responding on Wednesday, Mr Atiku’s media office challenged the APC to explain the dramatic increase in the Service-Wide Vote.

In a statement signed by Strategic Media Associate Olusola Sanni, the media office questioned why the allocation rose from N638.34 billion in 2024 to over N12.8 trillion in 2026.

“It is remarkable that in his lengthy treatise, Mr Morka failed to answer the central question: What emergency or unforeseen expenditure justifies increasing the Service-Wide Vote from N638.34bn in 2024 to over N12.8tn in 2026?” the statement read.

The media office said the increase represented an estimated 1,918 per cent rise within two years and argued that such a significant increase required detailed public justification.

While acknowledging that the Service-Wide Vote is a recognised component of government budgeting, it questioned the level of transparency surrounding the allocation.

“No one disputes the existence of a Service-Wide Vote as a recognised budgetary instrument. What Nigerians are questioning is the size, opacity, and abuse of the provision under the Tinubu administration,” it stated.

Calls for greater accountability

The former Vice President’s media office further alleged that some allocations lacked adequate project descriptions and warned that poor disclosure could erode public confidence in the budgeting process.

It insisted that questioning public expenditure was part of the responsibility of opposition parties and citizens.

“Nigerians are not interested in political insults. They want answers,” the statement said.

The media office called on the Federal Government to publish comprehensive details of the Service-Wide Vote, including the projects covered, beneficiaries, implementing agencies and legal basis for each expenditure.

The 2026 Appropriation Act has continued to attract scrutiny from opposition parties, civil society organisations and fiscal analysts, many of whom have called for greater transparency and accountability in the management of public funds.