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The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has slammed President Bola Tinubu’s administration over the latest World Bank report showing that 139 million Nigerians now live below the poverty line, accusing the government of “ruining lives and livelihoods” while masking failure with “creative statistics.” The party said the shocking figures confirm that more Nigerians have fallen into poverty under Tinubu than at any other time in the nation’s history.

The opposition party was reacting to the World Bank’s October 2025 report, which revealed that 139 million Nigerians — representing 61 percent of the population — now live below the poverty line, up from 81 million in 2019.

In a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC said the report is a damning indictment of the Tinubu administration’s economic management and a confirmation that its policies “have ruined lives and livelihoods.”

“The World Bank numbers tell a simple but 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,” the ADC declared.

The party said while the government boasts about revenue growth and fiscal stability, the average Nigerian is crushed by rising food prices, collapsing purchasing power, and joblessness.

“Behind President Tinubu’s shiny statistics are the grim realities of historic human suffering — families skipping meals, children dropping out of school, and households selling assets just to buy food and basic drugs,” the statement added.

The ADC noted that food inflation has soared out of control, with the price of a bag of rice multiplying fivefold in four years, forcing poor families to spend nearly 70 percent of their income on food. It said this has left millions unable to afford rent, school fees, or healthcare.

The party also accused the government of abandoning social protection measures, saying coverage of safety net programmes has collapsed from 20 percent in 2019 to just 6 percent in 2025.

“Government support to the poorest citizens is almost non-existent — only 0.14 percent of GDP compared to a global average of 1.5 percent,” the statement said.

The ADC dismissed President Tinubu’s Independence Day assurance that “the worst is over,” insisting that the government is in denial of the suffering across the country.

“Contrary to the President’s claim, the worst is not over — it has only just begun,” the party warned. “Rather than defending propaganda, the APC government should accept the World Bank’s verdict and act before it’s too late.”