PDP TO BUHARI: Explain whereabouts of recovered loots before asking for $30b loan

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Wednesday asked Nigerians to oppose President Muhammadu Buhari’s proposed $29.960billion loan except he explains what he did with the recovered looted funds.

The President had on Tuesday, asked the National Assembly to consent to his administration’s plan to make an external borrowing of $29.960bn to execute key programmes and infrastructural projects across the country and will cover projects between 2016 and 2018.

He also asked the lawmakers to approve for virements totalling N180.8bn in the 2016 budget to cater for required votes by some sectors of the economy.

But PDP, which asked the National Assembly not to allow Buhari get such a loan, said that Nigerians should first and foremost asked the President to explain what his administration had done with the recovered looted funds.

The party National Caretaker Committee spokesperson, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, stated this in a statement in Abuja on Wednesday, insisting that President Buhari has the duty to enumerate what he wants to do with a loan of about $30b instead of making vague statement about it.

“This government budgeted N6.07trn for the 2016 Fiscal Year with deficit of N2.22trn and according to the breakdown, N1.8trn was budgeted for Capital Expenditure and President Buhari is now seeking to borrow over N9trn ($29.960b) for ‘critical infrastructure’.

Read also: We said it, ‘Buhari is clueless’ – PDP

“This is absurd and way outside the Government budgetary provisions for Capital Expenditure and must be rejected by all well-meaning Nigerians.

“Nigerians will recall that the Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Alhaji Lai Mohammed in June 2016 made public through a press statement, an account of recovered looted funds between May 2015 to May 2016 amounting to the sums of N78.3b, $185.1m, £3.5m and €11,250m in cash; while others were under interim forfeiture. What happened to the recovered funds?

“Or is it the same funds the EFCC and Department of State Services are planting in houses of opposition figures and justices instead of channelling it into the economy?” the statement read.

By Ebere Ndukwu …

 

 

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