The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says that Information and Culture Minister, Alhaji Lai Mohammed’s plot to borrow $500 million through the ministry was to service members of the supposed presidential cabal.
PDP stated this in a Monday statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan.
Lai Mohammed had pledged to digitise the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) to enable it to compete with the likes of Cable News Network (CNN) if the loan requested by the ministry is approved.
The minister made the pledge while appearing before the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Loans to defend the $500 million loan the ministry applied for from President Muhammadu Buhari’s $29.96b loan for funding critical infrastructure in the country.
Mohammed explained that if the fund was approved, the NTA could be upgraded to enable it to send out signals that would be at par with CNN.
“In 2014, we made $23m from music alone and about $53m in 2019 and we are looking forward to making $83m in 2025. You can imagine the kind of growth we will have if only we digitise all the NTA stations in the country,” the minister said.
PDP said the minister’s plan was nothing but a plot to mortgage the future of Nigerians.
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According to the main opposition party, the National Assembly must save the nation by “refusing the request by President Muhammadu Buhari to plunge the nation into more debt through his request for additional $29.9 billion dollars loan, in which the said $500 million and other unexplained subheads are embedded.”
The PDP urged the National Assembly to reject the “clear attempt by the cabal in the Buhari Presidency to worsen the economic situation in our country via the use of phony projects as guise to draw foreign funds to service their selfish economic and political interests”.
It said it was worrisome that the nation’s “foreign debt has accumulated to $83 billion dollars with nothing to show other than excruciating unemployment rate, decayed infrastructure, a worsening governance system, escalated insecurity and unprecedented poverty.”
“The PDP alerts that the request for the approval of $500 million is aimed at setting the stage for further fleecing of our nation’s economy as the Federal Government under the Buhari administration has shown no commitment towards nation building, transparency and accountability in governance.
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“Moreover, the Federal Government has failed to present details of the requested $29.9 billion dollars loan in which the $500 million being requested by the Minister of Information and Culture is embedded; a development that points to nothing but the corruption in the Buhari administration.
“While counselling the Minister to perish the thoughts of $500 million, the PDP charges him to use his appearance at the National Assembly to give account of the funds so far released to the Ministry of Information and Culture which has been plagued by cases and allegations of corruption under his watch.
“The party also charges Lai Mohammed to immediately provide answers to circumstances surrounding the reported National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) N2.5 billion fraud.
“The PDP urges the National Assembly to shelve all requests for foreign loans until the Buhari Presidency heed to the demand by Nigerians to open its books and publish details of all financial transactions on foreign loans as well as spending from the federation account so as to secure our economy from the bazaar of the corrupt cabal in the Buhari Presidency,” the statement further read.