Senate rejects FG’s $30bn foreign loan

By Kayode Ogunwale

The Senate today moved against President Muhammadu Bukari plans to borrow $29.960 billion externally.
Senators at the sitting unanimously rejected federal government plan to borrow $29.960 billion external loan for execution of key infrastructural projects across the country.
The president had on October 26, 2016, forwarded the request to the National Assembly to approve external borrowing plan of $29.960 billion to execute key infrastructural projects across the country between 2016 and 2018.
The Senate declined to discuss it as it was killed immediately it was mentioned as an executive communication by Senate Leader, Senator Ali Ndume “that the Senate do consider the request of the President Commander in Chief on the 2016 to 2018 External Borrowing Rolling Plan
When the question was put to commence the consideration of the request senators answered in the negative, rejecting the proposal.
The President of the Senate Bukola Saraki who appeared surprised by the position of the senators posed the question again and many more senators answered “nay”.
Saraki, however ruled in favour of the dissenting voices and the request was rejected.
President Buhari had explained in the letter that external borrowing plan would be targeted at projects which cut across all sectors with special emphasis on infrastructure, Agriculture, Health, Education , Water supply , Growth and employment generation , poverty reduction through social safety net programmes and governance and financial management reforms etc. According to him,” the total cost of the projects and programmes under the borrowing (rolling) plan is $29.960billion made up of proposed projects and programmes loan of $11.274billion, Special National Infrastructure projects $10.686billion, Euro bonds of $4.5 billion and Federal Government budget support of $3.5billion “. The President who also explained that the loan was very necessary in view of the serious infrastructural deficit, the nation is facing, said, “Considering the huge infrastructure deficit currently being experienced in the country and the enormous financial resources required to fill the gap in the face of dwindling resources and the inability of our annual budgetary provisions to bridge the deficit, it has become necessary to resort to prudent external borrowing to bridge the financing gap, which will largely be applied to key infrastructure projects namely Power, Railway and roads projects among others.”