$29.9bn loan: Nigeria slipping into another debt trap – Onyekpere

The Lead Director, Centre for Social Justice (CEN­SOJ), Mr Eze Onyekpere, has condemned the proposed plan by the Federal Govern­ment to borrow $29.96 billion from external source, describ­ing it as a looming debt burden on the country.

Onyekpere in a media chat in Abuja to review the 2016-2018 Medium term borrowing plan said the loan proposal is still shrouded in secrecy, calling for the public to be adequately in­formed, “The document on the loan should be made available in the public domain. Nigerians are entitled to know details. It should be on the website of the budget office.”

He said the loan will further increase the debt burden of the country, “it is clear that the Fed­eral Government of Nigeria is gradually slipping into another era of debt trap. Should the gov­ernment continue to geometri­cally increase its external debt stock without commensurate increase in its commitment to external debt service, soon the government will have to under­go another round of debt relief in less than two decades”

“Only a bad father will be­queath debt on the children, instead of inheriting wealth the government is leaving us with debt.”

“The implication is that every year the Federal Government will borrow the sum of $9.987 billion. N2.896 trillion will be added to the existing external debt stock of the Federal Gov­ernment of Nigeria per year. To this end, the present administra­tion intends to grow the Fed­eral Government’s external debt stock from the current value of $11.261 billion as at second quarter of 2016 to $41.221 bil­lion by end of 2018 fiscal year.