The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has told the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, to perish the thought of securing $500 million dollars (N182 billion) loan, purportedly for the upgrading of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA).
According to the party, doing so would be further mortgaging the nation’s future.
In a statement issued on Monday by its spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan, the PDP also urged the National Assembly to refusing the request by President Muhammadu Buhari “to plunge our 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”.
According to the PDP, the loan was nothing but an attempt by the cabal in the Buhari Presidency to worsen the economic situation in the country using phony projects as a guise to draw foreign funds to service ‘their selfish’ economic and political interests.
The party pointed out that under the Buhari Presidency, the nation’s foreign debt had accumulated to $83 billion dollars with nothing to show other than the excruciating unemployment rate, decayed infrastructure, a worsening governance system, escalated insecurity and unprecedented poverty.
The PDP stressed 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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The PDP said as far as it was concerned, 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.
Meanwhile, the PDP has urged the Information Minister to use his appearance at the National Assembly to account for 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.
Furthermore, the party said the Minister should immediately provide answers to circumstances surrounding the reported National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) N2.5 billion fraud.
