PDP blasts Osinbajo, says APC states greatest debtors

National publicity secretary of the PDP, Olisa Metuh has lambasted the vice president elect’ Prof. Yemi Osinbajo for criticising the federal government over the nation’s debt profile of $63.7billion, but also failing to reveal that the APC states owe a greater percentage of the debt.
Metuh in a statement on Monday, said,
“Prof. Osinbajo is aware that the $63.7 billion is made up of external and domestic debts belonging not only to the Federal Government but to federal and state governments and accumulating since the 1960s, yet he deliberately misrepresented the facts to give the unsuspecting public the impression that the amount was exclusively incurred by the current Federal Government.

“Perhaps the Vice President-elect avoided the details so as not to expose the fact that the APC controlled Lagos state has both the highest external debt stock of $1.169, billion as well as the highest domestic debt stock of N278, 867 billion.

“Furthermore we find it unacceptable and unstatesmanly for the Vice President-elect to attempt to mislead Nigerians into believing that the total federal debt component was accumulated under the President Goodluck Jonathan-led administration, when it is on record that a greater chunk of the amount was inherited”, the statement said.

The party said it was also on record that part of the contemporary borrowing from the domestic bond market was occasioned by the global economic and financial crisis as well as the downturn in crude oil revenue, which adversely affected other economies of the world.

Berating the in-coming administration for dwelling on excuses and reneging on campaign promises, Metuh stated, that “The APC must fulfill its promises for which Nigerians voted for them. Were they not aware of the debt stock and the dwindling oil revenues before making their huge promises to the people? Were the promises only intended as carrots to mislead the people and deceitfully win their votes after which they are dumped?”.

The PDP said “come June ending, the APC must be ready to commence in a very transparent manner, the payment of monthly N5,000 to 25 million poor Nigerians from across the country, monthly allowances for discharged but yet to be employed youth corps members as well as commence delivery of free meals to school children among other promises”.

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