Former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu of turning Nigeria’s public revenue system into a “private tollgate” with the appointment of Xpress Payments Solutions Limited as a new Treasury Single Account (TSA) collecting agent.
In a statement on Sunday, Atiku questioned the rationale behind what he described as moving Nigeria from a republic to a private holding company controlled by a small circle of vested interests. He likened the move to a resurrection of the “Alpha Beta revenue cartel” that dominated Lagos State during and after Tinubu’s tenure as governor.
The former vice president argued that introducing such a policy amid a national tragedy and deepening insecurity is both insensitive and an example of “governance by stealth.”
“When a nation is grieving, leadership should show empathy and focus on securing lives, not on expanding private revenue pipelines,” Atiku said.
He raised concerns about the lack of consultation, stakeholder engagement, or National Assembly oversight, questioning why the appointment was rushed and implemented without public discourse. Atiku also asked what value Xpress Payments would add that existing TSA channels do not already provide, asserting that the move represents “state capture masquerading as digital innovation.”
Atiku called for the immediate suspension of Xpress Payments’ appointment pending a public inquiry. He demanded full disclosure of contractual terms, beneficiaries, fee structures, and selection criteria. Additionally, he urged a comprehensive audit of TSA operations to prevent the creeping privatization of revenue collection, emphasizing the need for a legal framework to prohibit private intermediaries from being inserted into core government revenue systems.
“Nigeria’s revenues are not political spoils. They are the lifeblood of our national survival, especially at a time when insecurity is tearing communities apart,” Atiku said, urging the Tinubu government to abandon what he described as Lagos-style revenue cartelization and return to transparency, constitutionalism, and public accountability.
