The African Democratic Congress has said that the World Bank’s October 2025 report, which revealed that 139 million Nigerians are now living below the poverty line, exposes the widening gap between the Federal Government’s claims of economic recovery and the harsh realities faced by ordinary citizens.

In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party said the World Bank’s findings provide an “unbiased verdict” on the state of Nigeria’s economy, highlighting how poverty, hunger, and inflation have worsened under the current administration.

The ADC directly challenged the current ruling party and administration’s track record, stating: “The World Bank numbers tell a painful story: under the APC and President Bola Tinubu’s government, more Nigerians have fallen into poverty than at any other time in our history. In 2019, four out of ten Nigerians were poor. Today, it is at least six out of ten,” the ADC stated.

The party described the reported rise in the number of people living below the poverty line—from 81 million in 2019 to 139 million in 2025—as alarming and contrary to official narratives of progress.

Abdullahi used the President’s previous comments to highlight the disconnect, saying: “We recall that President Tinubu, in his Independence Day address, declared triumphantly that ‘the worst is over,’ while citing statistics now shown to be inconsistent with the facts. Behind those optimistic figures lie grim realities — families skipping meals, children dropping out of school, and households selling assets just to survive,” Abdullahi said.

The ADC criticised the Federal Government for celebrating record revenue collection without addressing the growing cost of living, adding that food inflation has continued to rise sharply.

The statement noted the extreme financial pressure on households, adding: “Poor families now spend roughly 70 percent of their income on food, leaving nothing for rent, school fees, or medicine.”

It also lamented the shrinking of social protection programmes, noting that coverage had dropped from 20 percent in 2019 to just 6 percent in 2025, with government spending on social safety nets now at only 0.14 percent of GDP — far below the global average of 1.5 percent.

The party delivered a stark conclusion on the economic situation: “The truth is that Nigerians are worse off under the current administration. Contrary to the President’s claim, the worst is not over; it appears the worst has only just begun,” the ADC said.

The party further criticised the use of what it described as an “artificially low” domestic poverty threshold, arguing that it conceals the true scale of poverty in the country.

Abdullahi stated the flaw in the methodology: “A poverty line that is set too low does not protect the poor — it hides them. The government cannot fix poverty by redefining it downward,” Abdullahi said.

The ADC called for a fundamental shift in economic policy, urging the government to prioritise food security, job creation, and targeted social protection measures to ease the hardship faced by millions of Nigerians.

The statement concluded by advocating for people-centered governance: “What Nigeria needs now is a government that puts the people first and understands that inclusive growth is not just a slogan, but a deliberate strategy for national development.”