The 2027 presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has challenged the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to identify the individuals and companies allegedly involved in the $2.4 billion oil subsidy fraud she said she uncovered while serving as Nigeria’s Minister of Finance.

Sowore made the demand in a statement posted on X on Sunday, questioning the evidence supporting the alleged fraud and its reported connection to the kidnapping of Okonjo-Iweala’s mother in 2012.

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His response followed reports of an interview in which Okonjo-Iweala recounted how her efforts to uncover an alleged $2.4 billion fuel subsidy fraud led to threats against her and the abduction of her mother, Kamene Okonjo.

The initial report, published by Nigerian media outlets on Saturday and Sunday, October 17 and 18, followed Okonjo-Iweala’s account of the incident and her experience fighting corruption while serving in government.

In his response, Sowore questioned the identities of those allegedly responsible for the fraud and the availability of documentary evidence supporting the claims.

“During her two terms at the center of Nigeria’s economic management, who exactly did she discover was responsible for this multibillion-dollar subsidy fraud?” he asked.

He also demanded details of the companies and individuals allegedly implicated, as well as the findings of investigations into the matter.

“Which companies and individuals were implicated? Where are the audit findings, investigation reports and records of prosecution?” Sowore queried.

The AAC presidential candidate also criticised Okonjo-Iweala’s book, Fighting Corruption Is Dangerous, in which she recounted the kidnapping and linked it to her anti-corruption efforts.

Sowore argued that the book did not provide evidence identifying those responsible for the alleged fraud or explaining what happened to the money.

He further questioned the evidence connecting the alleged subsidy fraud investigation to the kidnapping of Okonjo-Iweala’s mother.

According to Sowore, police records, prosecution records and judicial findings concerning the kidnapping pointed to the alleged involvement of palace guards, relatives and domestic workers.

He maintained that the circumstances surrounding the incident should be examined using verifiable evidence, rather than accepting or dismissing competing accounts without proper scrutiny.

Sowore also questioned why, according to his understanding, Okonjo-Iweala had not publicly challenged the police’s account of the kidnapping or demanded a fresh, independent investigation.

He criticised Bloomberg Television journalist Francine Lacqua over her handling of Okonjo-Iweala’s account, arguing that further verification was necessary.

Returning to the central issue, Sowore asked: “Who stole the alleged $2.4 billion?”

He also demanded to know where the audit findings were, which companies and individuals were implicated, what became of the investigations and what evidence established a direct connection between the alleged fraud and the kidnapping.

Former presidential aide Reno Omokri has criticised Afrobeats singer Peter Okoye over his call for Nigerians to retire older politicians and support former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi.

Okoye, popularly known as Mr P, made the remarks in a video that went viral on social media, urging Nigerians to move away from older politicians and support Obi.

“Let’s leave these old guys, dem done try. Let’s retire them,” Okoye said in the video, according to Omokri’s account.

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Reacting to the singer’s position in a post on Sunday, Omokri argued that age alone should not determine Nigerians’ choice of presidential candidates, insisting that a comparison of the ages of the leading presidential tickets does not support Okoye’s argument.

Omokri noted that Obi is 65 years old, while his proposed running mate, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, is 70. He put President Bola Tinubu’s age at 74 and Vice President Kashim Shettima’s at 60.

According to Omokri, the Obi-Kwankwaso ticket has a combined age of 135 years, compared with 134 years for the Tinubu-Shettima ticket.

He argued that, based on the average ages of the two tickets, the incumbent president and his deputy are marginally younger as a pair.

Omokri also compared the figures with those of Atiku Abubakar and Rotimi Amaechi, whose combined ages he put at 140 years.

Beyond the age argument, Omokri questioned Obi’s record as Anambra governor, contrasting it with Tinubu’s administration in Lagos State.

He listed schools and independent power projects he attributed to Tinubu’s tenure as Lagos governor, challenging Okoye to identify comparable projects initiated, completed and commissioned with government funds during Obi’s time in office.

Omokri further argued that Nigerians should consider candidates’ records in public office rather than relying primarily on their ages.

He also defended the Tinubu administration by citing the absence of a nationwide strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) during its tenure and the federal government’s Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) programme.

The Federal Ministry of Finance has challenged reports that Federal Government interest payments reached 124 per cent of revenue in the first half of 2026, describing the figure as misleading because it does not fully account for the scope of government debt obligations and revenue.

The ministry’s position comes in response to recent analysis citing the World Bank’s October 2026 Nigeria Development Update, which reported that interest payments exceeded federal revenue during the first six months of the year.

In a press release on Sunday and dated October 18, 2026, the ministry argued that the calculation compared interest payments that included obligations serviced on behalf of other tiers of government with federal revenue alone.

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According to the ministry, this approach overstates the ratio because the debt obligations and revenue used in the calculation should cover the same level of government.

“The interest figure includes debt the Federal Government services on behalf of other tiers of government, including external loans to states,” the ministry said.

It added that the revenue figure used in the calculation was incomplete because it excluded independent revenue earned by government agencies and enterprises but not yet remitted to the Treasury.

The ministry also explained that government revenue typically increases in the second half of the year because of the statutory timing of certain tax payments.

Citing the 2025 figures, it said the debt-service-to-revenue ratio stood at 156 per cent in the first half of the year but fell below 60 per cent on a full-year basis.

The ministry said the ratio had declined from 97 per cent before the current administration’s reforms, describing the figures as evidence of progress in the government’s fiscal position.

Revenue Growth Outpaces Interest Payments

The ministry also highlighted the changes in federal revenue and interest payments between the first halves of 2025 and 2026.

According to the statement, federal revenue increased by 72 per cent, rising from ₦3.6 trillion in the first half of 2025 to ₦6.2 trillion in the corresponding period of 2026.

Interest payments, meanwhile, rose by 38 per cent, from ₦5.6 trillion to ₦7.7 trillion over the same period.

“Revenue is therefore growing almost twice as fast as interest costs,” the ministry said.

It added that the interest-to-revenue ratio fell by 32 percentage points, from 156 per cent to 124 per cent, while the gap between interest payments and revenue narrowed from ₦2 trillion to ₦1.5 trillion.

The ministry maintained that the figures reflected the impact of the government’s reforms rather than evidence of fiscal distress.

Ministry Cites Full-Year Debt Projection

On debt sustainability, the ministry argued that a six-month snapshot should not be used as the sole measure of the country’s debt position.

It said the World Bank’s report projected Nigeria’s full-year 2026 debt service, covering both interest and principal payments, at 46 per cent of revenue.

“Debt sustainability is assessed on a full-year basis, not over six months,” the ministry stated.

It described the projected full-year figure as the appropriate benchmark for assessing the country’s debt-service position.

Finance Ministry Defends Government Borrowing

The ministry also defended the legality of the Federal Government’s borrowing, stating that all borrowing fell within the limits approved by the National Assembly under the 2026 Appropriation Act and the approved borrowing plan.

According to the statement, borrowing activities comply with the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007 and the Debt Management Office (Establishment) Act 2003.

It added that borrowing information is published regularly by the Debt Management Office.

The ministry said it welcomed scrutiny of public finances but urged analysts and commentators to ensure that figures were compared on a consistent basis.

“We encourage analysts and commentators to apply the same rigour they seek to hold the government to: compare like with like, read figures in context, and seek clarification where the data is unclear,” the statement said.