In the constantly shifting dynamics of naija-politics, one disturbing pattern has emerged that should alarm every Nigerian: President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is operating with brazen impunity, treating the nation's treasury as his personal piggy bank while the opposition watches helplessly from the sidelines.

It started with El-Rufai, the former Kaduna Governor who has transformed from Tinubu ally to his most vocal critic. El-Rufai called on the National Assembly to commence impeachment proceedings against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over an alleged N1.5 trillion illegally withdrawn from the federation Account over a period of 15 months.

Let that number sink in. One point five trillion naira. Withdrawn from the Federation Account without appropriation by the National Assembly. El-Rufai accused Tinubu of abusing his presidential powers by unlawfully deducting ₦100 billion monthly from the Federation Account for 15 months running without approval by the National Assembly.

That's N100 billion every single month. Systematically taken from funds that belong to all three tiers of government—federal, state, and local—without any legislative approval, without any transparency, without any accountability.

El-Rufai claimed the funds are allegedly allocated to security agencies but have failed to tackle escalating insecurity across the country. So not only is the money being taken illegally, it's also not producing any results. Insecurity is worse than ever, kidnappings are rampant, bandits operate freely—yet N100 billion disappears monthly into a black hole labeled "security."

Then Atiku Abubakar joined the chorus of condemnation. Paul Ibe, Media Adviser to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, questioned the continued silence of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his administration over an allegation that N100 billion is being withdrawn monthly from the Federation Account without legislative approval.

Atiku didn't just stop at the illegal withdrawals. In a New Year message, Atiku accused Tinubu of incompetence, lawlessness, and political intimidation, describing 2025 as one of the most "punishing" years in Nigeria's recent history. He went further, alleging that the government operated for months without a functional budget, relying instead on propaganda and excessive borrowing .

Operating without a functional budget! Think about that. The President of Nigeria running the country's finances without a legally approved budget. That's not just incompetence—that's deliberate lawlessness masquerading as governance.

And then yesterday, Peter Obi delivered what might be the most comprehensive indictment of Tinubu's fiscal recklessness yet, bringing to light the chaotic reality of naija-politics where rules simply don't apply to those in power.

Obi questioned which budget the country is currently operating, noting that Nigeria has in recent years been implementing items from multiple budgets simultaneously. He asked the fundamental question every Nigerian should be asking: "Which budget will Nigeria use this year? Will it be the budgets for 2023, 2024, 2025, or 2026, or some combination of all these years?"

Obi noted that as of last year, implementation of budget items from the 2023, 2024, and 2025 budgets was ongoing in what he described as "a unique approach to budgeting, which continues to perpetuate a trend of fiscal recklessness".

Multiple budgets running simultaneously! No serious country in the world operates this way. It's financial chaos elevated to state policy. It makes transparency impossible, accountability meaningless, and corruption inevitable.

Obi said President Tinubu inherited a legally signed N21.83 trillion budget for 2023, but later presented a N2.17 trillion supplementary budget which attracted criticism for prioritising benefits for public office holders while Nigerians were grappling with difficult economic reforms.

The pattern continued: N35.06 trillion budget for 2024 and N54.99 trillion budget for 2025, with Tinubu exercising appropriation powers over more than N114 trillion in public spending in less than three years.

One hundred and fourteen trillion naira! And the government has failed to achieve even fifty percent budget implementation, exposing a profound crisis of budget credibility.

So Tinubu has appropriated N114 trillion but can't even implement half of it? Where is the money going? What is it being used for? Why is there no accountability?

Obi alleged that the government's opaque decision to repeal the 2024 and 2025 budgets and re-enact them with extended implementation timelines means Nigerians have not seen these re-enacted budgets, and there is no public information regarding the specific capital projects included or their associated costs.

"This is not reform," Obi declared. "It represents fiscal obscurity elevated to the level of state policy."

And it gets worse. Obi faulted the government for allegedly stopping the publishing of treasury reports, noting that this has dismantled vital transparency framework inherited from the previous administration.

The OpenTreasury.gov.ng portal, which allowed Nigerians to track government spending, has been shut down. No budget implementation reports were released in 2025. The government has deliberately destroyed every mechanism for public oversight.

This is not incompetence. This is deliberate. This is a government that doesn't want Nigerians to know what it's doing with their money.

So the question becomes: Is Tinubu acting with impunity, or is the opposition just too weak to keep the government on its toes?

The brutal answer, shaped by the harsh realities of naija-politics, is both.

Yes, Tinubu is absolutely acting with impunity. The evidence is overwhelming:

- N100 billion monthly withdrawals without legislative approval

- N1.5 trillion stolen from the Federation Account over 15 months

- Multiple budgets running simultaneously with no clear legal framework

- N114 trillion appropriated with less than 50% implementation

- Treasury transparency portals shut down

- Budget implementation reports no longer published

- Budgets repealed and re-enacted in secret

This is not governance. This is a kleptocracy operating in plain sight.

But the opposition is also pathetically weak. El-Rufai called for impeachment—nothing happened. Atiku raised alarms—nothing happened. Peter Obi documented the fiscal recklessness—nothing happened.

Why? Because the National Assembly has been completely compromised. The same legislators who should be impeaching Tinubu for these constitutional violations are rubber-stamping every illegal action he takes.

The ADC accused the National Assembly of abdicating its responsibility by rubber-stamping loan requests without scrutiny or accountability.

The legislature, which is supposed to be a check on executive power, has become a cheerleading squad for presidential impunity.

And this impunity extends beyond just fiscal recklessness. Opposition leaders including Atiku, Peter Obi, and David Mark accused the Federal Government of weaponizing state institutions, particularly the EFCC, the Nigeria Police and ICPC, to persecute political opponents under the guise of fighting corruption.

When you control the police, when you control EFCC, when you control INEC, when you control the National Assembly, when you can withdraw billions without approval, when you can run multiple budgets simultaneously, when you can shut down transparency portals—you're not a president anymore. You're a dictator with democratic window dressing.

The opposition is raising alarms, but alarms without action are just noise. And Tinubu knows it. He knows that in the flawed system that is naija-politics, he can do whatever he wants as long as he controls the instruments of state power.

El-Rufai can call for impeachment all he wants—the Senate won't act. Atiku can document lawlessness—EFCC is too busy harassing opposition figures to investigate the President. Peter Obi can expose fiscal recklessness—the media will report it for a day and move on.

This is the tragedy of Nigerian democracy in 2026. We have a president operating with complete impunity, treating the constitution like a suggestion and the treasury like his personal account. And we have an opposition that can document every violation, expose every crime, raise every alarm—but can't do anything to stop it.

Obi warned that "no nation can operate with such recklessness and succeed" . He's absolutely right. But the question is: how do you stop a president who controls every lever of power and faces no consequences for breaking every rule?

The answer should be the ballot box in 2027. But when the same president controls INEC, when he's weaponizing security agencies, when he's using federal resources to buy off opposition, when he's demonstrated that he doesn't respect laws or court judgments, can we trust that the 2027 election will be free and fair?

Tinubu's impunity isn't just about stealing money or running chaotic budgets. It's about establishing a precedent that the president is above the law, that checks and balances don't matter, that the opposition can scream all they want but nothing will change.

And unless Nigerians wake up and demand accountability, unless the opposition finds a way to translate their documented evidence into actual political consequences, unless citizens are willing to defend democracy even when it's inconvenient—Tinubu's impunity will continue unchecked all the way to 2027 and beyond.

Is Tinubu acting with impunity? Absolutely. Is the opposition too weak? Tragically, yes. And that combination is a recipe for democratic collapse that every Nigerian should fear.

What do you think? Can anything stop Tinubu's impunity before 2027? Is the opposition doing enough, or are they just complaining without action? And most importantly, what can ordinary Nigerians do when their president operates above the law? Drop your thoughts in the comments section!