Habitual Borrowing Is Economic Leprosy

 

Introduction:

On April 29, 2026, several media outlets reported that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared that “borrowing is not leprosy.” Many Nigerians initially waited for the now familiar explanation from presidential aides that the statement had been distorted, misquoted, or perhaps generated by political opponents. But the silence that followed suggested otherwise.

Mr. President, with due respect, many citizens hold a different view:

Habitual borrowing is economic leprosy.

Borrowing may appear harmless at the beginning, just as leprosy in ancient times often started as a small spot on the skin. Yet if left unchecked, it spreads quietly, weakens strength, destroys dignity, and gradually places its victim under bondage.

The Holy Scriptures declare:

“Thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.” — Deuteronomy 28:12

God’s design was for nations blessed with abundant resources and capable people to become productive, self-reliant, and influential — not perpetually dependent.

Today, however, many nations, institutions, families, and individuals have become addicted to borrowing. Governments borrow to fund recurrent expenditure. Families borrow to survive daily living. Young people borrow to sustain lifestyles beyond their means. Sadly, borrowing is now increasingly presented as wisdom instead of caution.

Yet the Bible warns clearly:

“The borrower is servant to the lender.” — Proverbs 22:7

A nation that survives primarily on borrowing risks surrendering not only its economic future, but also its independence, confidence, and dignity.

This is why many Nigerians insist:

Habitual borrowing is economic leprosy.

1. Economic Leprosy Spreads Quietly

Leprosy rarely destroys instantly. It spreads gradually until the entire body becomes weakened.

So it is with excessive borrowing.

At first, loans appear attractive and reasonable:

*“We need infrastructure.”

*“We need development.”

*“We need economic stimulus.”

“We need to close fiscal gaps.”

These arguments may sound legitimate, especially in developing economies. Indeed, strategic borrowing for productive investment is not inherently evil. Nations and businesses sometimes borrow responsibly to finance infrastructure, industrial expansion, or emergency recovery.

However, when borrowing becomes habitual rather than strategic, danger begins.

Debt servicing starts consuming national revenue. Future generations inherit obligations they did not create. Interest payments begin to compete with funding for education, healthcare, security, and industrial growth.

According to recent fiscal reports, Nigeria’s debt servicing obligations now consume a troubling proportion of government revenue, leaving less room for productive national investment. Many citizens therefore question whether the current borrowing trajectory is sustainable.

What begins as assistance can gradually become captivity.

2. Habitual Borrowing Weakens National Independence

God intended His people to be productive and influential:

“The Lord shall make thee the head, and not the tail.” — Deuteronomy 28:13

A nation constantly dependent on loans gradually loses confidence in its own capacity for innovation, productivity, and resource management.

Excessive borrowing can weaken:

*economic sovereignty,

*political independence,

*national confidence,

*and long-term development planning.

The borrower often loses the moral courage to speak freely before the lender.

Nations heavily indebted to foreign institutions sometimes find themselves under subtle external pressures regarding policy direction, economic priorities, and domestic decisions.

Economic dependence can quietly evolve into psychological dependence.

3. Borrowing Without Productivity Is Dangerous

The real danger is not borrowing alone; it is borrowing without measurable productivity.

If loans are obtained without:

*accountability,

*transparency,

*industrial expansion,

*agricultural transformation,

*innovation,

*infrastructure efficiency,

*and visible economic returns,

then debt becomes a burden rather than a blessing.

A nation cannot continue borrowing while:

*industries collapse,

*unemployment rises,

*local manufacturing weakens,

*corruption persists,

*and productivity remains stagnant.

Borrowing to consume instead of borrowing to produce is financially dangerous and morally irresponsible.

4. When Borrowed Funds Produce Little Visible Impact

One of the greatest concerns among Nigerians is that huge sums are borrowed in the name of development, yet ordinary citizens struggle to see corresponding transformation in daily life.

Roads remain poor.

Electricity remains unstable.

Public hospitals remain under-equipped.

Schools continue to deteriorate.

Industries remain weak.

Youth unemployment continues to rise.

Yet borrowing continues almost endlessly.

The painful question many citizens ask is:

Where is the money going?

Even more troubling is the perception that a significant portion of public resources often circulates among politically connected individuals while ordinary citizens receive temporary handouts described as “empowerment.”

True empowerment is not:

*distributing food for media cameras,

*sharing token gifts during political seasons,

*or creating dependency through unsustainable palliatives.

True empowerment creates:

*jobs,

*industries,

*opportunities,

*productivity,

*dignity,

*and sustainable livelihoods.

God does not raise leaders merely to supervise the sharing of crumbs. Leadership is stewardship. Leadership should create systems through which citizens can rise through enterprise, innovation, and productive labor.

Until transparency, accountability, and measurable development accompany public borrowing, many Nigerians will continue to see debt not as development, but as a burden transferred to future generations without equivalent benefits.

5. Economic Dependency Is Also Psychological

Leprosy in ancient societies often isolated people socially and mentally.

Likewise, chronic borrowing can create a national mentality of dependency:

*dependency on foreign approval,

*dependency on imported solutions,

*dependency on external rescue.

Eventually, leadership stops asking:

“How do we build?”

and starts asking:

“Who will lend us more?”

That mindset is dangerous for any nation blessed with abundant human and natural resources.

6. Nigeria Must Rediscover Productivity

Nigeria is not a poor nation.

Nigeria is richly blessed with:

*fertile agricultural land,

*mineral resources,

energetic youth,

*intellectual capacity,

*entrepreneurial spirit,

*and strategic economic potential.

Yet poor leadership culture, corruption, weak institutions, policy inconsistency, and inadequate productivity have prevented the nation from translating its blessings into sustainable prosperity.

The solution to Nigeria’s challenges is not endless borrowing.

The solution lies in:

*industrialization,

*agricultural modernization,

*local manufacturing,

*technological innovation,

*disciplined governance,

*export-driven productivity,

*and responsible economic management.

Nations rise sustainably through production, not perpetual borrowing.

7. A Word to Leaders

Leadership is stewardship.

Borrowing recklessly today may mortgage the future of unborn generations.

True leadership does not merely seek loans.

True leadership builds systems that:

*generate wealth,

*encourage production,

*empower citizens,

*strengthen institutions,

*support local industries,

*reduce dependency,

*and inspire national confidence.

History ultimately remembers leaders not by how much they borrowed, but by how much they built.

Conclusion:

Mr. President, borrowing may temporarily relieve economic pressure, especially during difficult times. But when borrowing becomes habitual, unproductive, and poorly managed, it behaves like economic leprosy:

*spreading gradually,

*weakening national strength,

*destroying confidence,

*increasing dependency,

*and burdening future generations.

Nigeria does not lack resources.

Nigeria needs:

*discipline,

*vision,

*accountability,

*integrity,

*productivity,

*1and transformational leadership.

Our nation possesses the potential to become economically strong, productive, and self-reliant once again.

May God grant Nigeria’s leaders wisdom to build a nation that depends more on productivity than on debt.

In Jesus’ name.

Amen.