EconomyNewsMore Facts Emerge As Anambra Lawmakers Are Set to Interrogate Prof. Chukwuma Soludo’s N100 Billion Loan Request

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AWKA — Anambra State lawmakers are now set to interrogate Governor Soludo’s loan request, in which the governor is seeking the nod of the House to borrow N100 billion, to help with funding the 2022 revised budget which has just been approved for the governor by the House. The Commissioner for Budget and other relevant government agencies and officials will be meeting with the House Committee on Public Accounts chaired by Hon. Somto Udeze, to look at the loan request and find the most approximate ground, in the public interest.

So far, the request by governor Soludo to borrow N100 billion came to members of the public as a rude shock, even as certain concerns of the people regard the loan has not been satisfactorily answered. Surrounding the governor’s loan request are questions about the terms and conditions of the loan. New findings suggest that the loan is already being sourced by the government in commercial banks even before approval by the House. The findings also suggest that contrary to the governor’s projection of interest rate on the loan, the interest on the loan is well around 16% and 17%, instead of 14%.

There are also concerns as to how the money will be repaid. Next to this is a question as to specific projects the loan will be invested in. Finally, there are concerns as to why exactly the governor is seeking to borrow N100 billion when the budget deficit for the 2022 revised budget is N42 billion. In any case, these concerns and questions are germane and might help the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Assembly in its interrogation of the loan, with a view to finding satisfactory answers upon which the loan approval by the House might be based.

As of today, the issue of the governor’s intention to borrow N100 billion is a major topic in Anambra’s civic spaces. Only a few days ago, this was a hot topic on twitter with hundreds of concerned Anambra people expressing dissatisfaction with the governor’s proposal to the House. Although the commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, and Commissioner for Finance, later joined the conversation on Twitter, yet, not many people felt satisfied with the answers they provided.

For instance, the governor has proposed to construct no fewer than about 220 KM of road across the state, but these roads were not clearly identified for easy vetting and verification by the public. The governor also assured that the money will be channeled into providing quality infrastructure for the state, yet again, these infrastructures were not mentioned in specifics, leaving the people hanging.

The House Committee on Public Accounts chaired by Hon. Somto Udeze is expected to be clear with the Commissioners and other government functionaries appearing before the committee, about the concerns of members of the public on the proposed loan. This public concern, it should be noted, is not exactly against the governor taking loan. Rather, it is for the government to provide satisfying answers to questions concerning the loan.

 

Ebuka Onyekwelu (Staff Writer)
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