Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Occasion, PDP, on Wednesday tackled the State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, and the State Home of Meeting over the deliberate borrowing of N100 billion for infrastructural tasks within the State.
DAILY POST experiences that the Home of Meeting had on Tuesday permitted the state governor’s request to borrow the sum of N100 billion from First Financial institution of Nigeria Plc for a contractor finance facility.
Reacting, the state management of PDP described the request by the Governor and approval by the State Home of Meeting as unacceptable, reckless, and harmful borrowing.
An announcement by Dr Tony Aziegbemi,
Chairman, Edo PDP Caretaker Committee and made obtainable to newsmen on Wednesday in Benin Metropolis mentioned between August 27, 1991 when the state was created and December 31, 2024 its home debt profile stood at N112, 998,966, 385,30 billion.
Aziegbemi opined that whereas it took 34 years for all Governors of the state to incur N112billion debt, it’s only taking Governor Okpebholo lower than eight months to incur N100 billion.
In line with him, the Peoples Democratic Occasion (PDP) in Edo State expresses grave concern over the current approval by the Edo State Home of Meeting for Governor Monday Okpebholo to acquire a One Hundred Billion Naira mortgage from First Financial institution of Nigeria.
“In line with the Debt Administration Workplace (DMO), Edo State’s complete home debt since creation on 27 August 1991 as at December 31, 2024, stood at One Hundred and Twelve Billion Naira (N112,000,000.00).
“If this new mortgage is accessed, Senator Okpebholo would have successfully doubled the state’s home debt profile in lower than eight months.
“It took 34 years for all governors of Edo State to incur N112 Billion Debt, it’s taking Sen. Monday Okpebholo lower than eight months to double it. That is an alarming improvement that raises severe questions concerning the long-term fiscal sustainability of the state; and certainly, concerning the monetary competence of this APC-led administration.
“What is especially disturbing is the whole absence of transparency surrounding this mortgage.
“No detailed breakdown of proposed tasks has been made public. No info has been supplied concerning the id of nominated contractors, the rate of interest, reimbursement phrases, or the timeline for execution.
“It’s unacceptable that such a big monetary obligation is being incurred with out public scrutiny or clear justification. The as soon as vibrant State Meeting has deserted its constitutional responsibility to rein within the excesses of the Govt Department of Authorities.
“The State Meeting have to be conscious that infrastructure loans of this magnitude are ordinarily sourced from improvement finance establishments on low-interest price/concessional phrases. Securing such a facility from a business financial institution with excessive rates of interest is each fiscally irresponsible and economically short-sighted.
“On the prevailing rate of interest of 30% and add-ons, Edo State shall be paying 35 billion Naira yearly simply as curiosity. That is alarming and acutely not sustainable.
“Once we raised alarm concerning the fall within the IGR from about N8bn month-to-month through the speedy previous authorities to about N2bn, Okpebholo and his hirelings of their jaundiced response lied to Edo folks that the State was producing N10bn month-to-month.
“We’re additionally conscious that the Okpebholo authorities inherited over N50 billion within the state treasury from the Godwin Obaseki-led administration lower than eight months in the past.
“So, how will we justify {that a} authorities that inherited such an quantity and claims to be producing over N10bn month-to-month in IGR is now working to First Financial institution Nigeria Plc to borrow N100 billion?
“It solely exposes the fiscal irresponsibility of the Okpebholo authorities and affirms the drastic fall within the IGR, thereby forcing them to resort to reckless borrowing to cowl up the shortfall.
“This lack of transparency is particularly troubling given the prevailing political context. With the Supreme Courtroom set to ship judgment within the attraction over the disputed 2024 governorship election which the APC stole in collusion with INEC, the timing of this borrowing requires vigilance.
“Edo’s assets belong to the folks, to not any social gathering or particular person searching for to carry on to energy by the courts.
“It seems to be nothing however one other conduit pipe to slush funds, which Okpebholo plans to service his countless record of godfathers and political thugs who helped him steal the folks’s mandate over the past governorship election.
“We reject this harmful resort to reckless borrowing and mortgaging of the way forward for our expensive State to foot the invoice of a grasping few”, he mentioned.
Aziegbemi added that according to the Supreme Courtroom judgment, it could discover the Freedom of Data Act 2011 to acquire detailed details about the mortgage.
He listed among the detailed info to request, together with a full record of the infrastructure tasks to be financed, names, and profiles of the nominated contractors.
Others are the total mortgage settlement, together with rate of interest, tenure, reimbursement phrases, and disbursement schedule, and all information of proceedings and resolutions associated to the mortgage by the State Govt Council.
Whereas rejecting the mortgage, he instructed the governor and his handlers that Edo folks wouldn’t idly watch them mortgage the way forward for the State and its folks to fund and fulfill the insatiable urge for food and opulent way of life of his godfathers and political cronies.
The PDP chairman, who warned the administration of First Financial institution Nigeria Plc towards granting the mortgage, added that the folks of Edo need to know what commitments are being made on their behalf and at what value.
