Natasha to Tinubu: Nigerians Crave Impact, Not Trillion-Naira Figures

The hollow echoes of trillion-naira projections were met with a sharp reality check on Friday as Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan responded to President Bola Tinubu’s ambitious N58.18 trillion 2026 budget proposal. Speaking at the joint session of the National Assembly shortly after the President’s presentation, the lawmaker for Kogi Central sent a clear message to the executive: the success of the fiscal year will not be measured by the size of the document, but by the tangible relief felt on the streets of Nigeria.

The N58.18 trillion Appropriation Bill, titled the “Budget of Economic Growth and Stability,” represents a massive scale-up in government spending aimed at addressing Nigeria’s volatile economic climate. However, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan was quick to pivot the conversation away from the staggering headline figures toward the quality of human outcomes. She warned that fiscal size alone is an insufficient remedy for the deep-seated developmental rot and systemic challenges currently strangling the nation’s potential.

Reflecting on the President’s address, the Senator noted that while the speech was lengthy and filled with macroeconomic objectives, one specific sentiment resonated with her. She highlighted the President’s own admission that the ultimate metric for governance is the “quantum of impact” experienced by the citizens. For the lawmaker, this statement must be treated as a binding promise rather than a mere rhetorical flourish to appease a struggling populace.

“Of all the lengthy speeches, one line by Mr. President struck me deeply,” the Senator remarked during the session. “It’s not the size of the budget but the quantum of impact felt by Nigerians.” This observation underscores a growing fatigue among lawmakers and constituents alike, who have witnessed successive record-breaking budgets fail to translate into lower inflation, affordable food, or stable electricity.

Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan emphasized that while the N58.18 trillion figure reflects the sheer scale of Nigeria’s economic ambitions and structural hurdles, the average citizen is indifferent to budget terminology. To the man in the market or the youth in the village, the budget is only successful if it leads to functional infrastructure, accessible healthcare, and a curriculum that prepares students for a modern economy.

The Kogi Central representative further cautioned that impressive projections on paper are no longer enough to sustain public trust. She argued that the 2026 budget must be a vehicle for sustainable job creation and social services that are actually accessible to the vulnerable, rather than existing as abstract data points in a ministerial report. In her view, the gap between “appropriation” and “impact” has been too wide for too long.

Her critique comes at a time when Nigerians are grappling with some of the highest living costs in decades. With the removal of fuel subsidies and the floating of the Naira continuing to exert pressure on household incomes, the Senator’s call for “measurable and positive impact” serves as a direct challenge to the President’s economic team to ensure that the 2026 fiscal cycle prioritizes human capital over bureaucratic expansion.

Beyond the numbers, the Senator’s stance reflects a broader legislative demand for accountability in the implementation phase. She suggested that the National Assembly would be watching closely to ensure that the “Budget of Growth” does not become a budget of waste. The focus, she insisted, must remain on how government spending translates into a better quality of life, safer communities, and a more predictable economic environment for small businesses.

As the National Assembly prepares to deliberate on the bill, Akpoti-Uduaghan’s intervention has set a high bar for the coming weeks of budget defense sessions. Her colleagues and the public will be looking to see if the various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) can prove that their requested billions will indeed deliver the “quantum of impact” the President promised and the Senator demanded.

The 2026 fiscal year is increasingly being seen as a make-or-break moment for the current administration’s economic reforms. By centering the conversation on impact rather than figures, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has voiced the silent plea of millions who are waiting for the government’s “economic ambitions” to finally reach their dinner tables and doorsteps.