The ministers of finance, Zainab Ahmed and the works and housing minister, Babatunde Fashola, said the federal government can’t stop borrowing to carry out projects.
That Herald gathered that President Buhari recently asked the Senate to approve a foreign loan allegedly to the tune of $30 billion to the federal government.
Ahmed and Fashola argued that the government must borrow to meet the infrastructural needs of the people, stressing that such borrowing was inevitable.
In her presentation, Ahmed said there was an urgent need to fund the 2020 budget to improve infrastructural development and create jobs.
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She said: “We need to invest in roads, rails, and to be able to grow at a growth better than we are growing now. They are strictly for infrastructure development. So that we can address the deficit that we have. We know we must comply with some criteria.”
Ahmed also allayed fears over the loan, saying that “Nigeria does not have a debt sustainability problem but revenue challenge.
On his party, Fashola said every kobo borrowed would be judiciously used, adding that the government could not ignore the infrastructural development needs in the country.
He said: “It is right to have this hearing because we cannot ignore the concerns of the members of the public over the debt profile of the country. As we cannot ignore the concerns about debts, so we cannot ignore the concerns and demands for the provision of life sustaining infrastructure.
“So, everybody wants a road, everybody wants a rail project, everybody wants a port and efficient airports. They want to ensure that our ports are efficient so that business can function more effectively, so that clearing of goods can happen more quickly and cheaply.
Earlier, The Herald gathered that Fashola bemoaned Nigerians who have been shaming the current administration for borrowing all the time to carry out projects.
He expressed his distaste for such comments when he was speaking with some reporters in Kwara state, recently. Fashola stated that whoever feels the government was not being reasonable by applying for loans should bring forward an alternative if there was any.
According to him, “Those who say we shouldn’t borrow must have an alternative answer to where we will get the money. Those who don’t support borrowing, are they ready to support increased taxes?”
The minister further explained that the main reason construction activities on some federal roads have been stalling is due to the unavailability of funds, adding that the Federal was left with no other option than to borrow money and complete all ongoing projects in the country.