P
ProfRem
Guest
Governor of Ekiti State and Chairman of the Peoples' Democratic Party (PDP) Governors' Forum, Mr. Ayodele Fayose has described the Federal Government's plan to secure Eurobond which repayment would last till 2032, as act like that of the Biblical prodigal son, expressing the fear that the loan may plunge the nation into pro-longed economic misery.
The governor, who challenged the federal to government make clarification as to the beneficiaries of the bond, stating whether it would be both the federal government and the federating units or federal government alone, added that; "questions must also be asked on repayment of the Eurobond because deductions from what should accrue to the federation account on a bond to be taken by the federal government for its own use only."
In a statement issued on Friday, by his Chief Press Secretary, Idowu Adelusi, the governor said; "What I'm even worried about and which they must explain to us is that you cannot get a bond without committing it to the source.
"Is the repayment going to be made by direct deductions from Nigeria's crude oil sales or from federal government share from the federation account?
"If it is going to be made directly from proceeds of crude oil accruing to Nigeria as a country, then the bond belongs to the federal, state and local governments and not federal government alone.
"The federal government is just one of the federating units making up Nigeria and revenue accruing to the country cannot be used to repay bond taken by the federal government for its own use alone.
"The federal government must therefore tell Nigerians how it intends to repay the facility from now till 2032. If it is going to be through direct deductions from revenue accruing to Nigeria, such that money would be taken from source which would not be part of the accruers to the central body, it means the $1 billion bond belongs to Nigerians and it must be shared among the federating units.
"So, we have to find out and take steps. It is either they bring the money and we share it; we take our percentage and they take theirs. The federal government cannot take that money and take it from source and tell us that the money, which belongs to all of us federating units, is its."
The governor, who challenged the federal to government make clarification as to the beneficiaries of the bond, stating whether it would be both the federal government and the federating units or federal government alone, added that; "questions must also be asked on repayment of the Eurobond because deductions from what should accrue to the federation account on a bond to be taken by the federal government for its own use only."
In a statement issued on Friday, by his Chief Press Secretary, Idowu Adelusi, the governor said; "What I'm even worried about and which they must explain to us is that you cannot get a bond without committing it to the source.
"Is the repayment going to be made by direct deductions from Nigeria's crude oil sales or from federal government share from the federation account?
"If it is going to be made directly from proceeds of crude oil accruing to Nigeria as a country, then the bond belongs to the federal, state and local governments and not federal government alone.
"The federal government is just one of the federating units making up Nigeria and revenue accruing to the country cannot be used to repay bond taken by the federal government for its own use alone.
"The federal government must therefore tell Nigerians how it intends to repay the facility from now till 2032. If it is going to be through direct deductions from revenue accruing to Nigeria, such that money would be taken from source which would not be part of the accruers to the central body, it means the $1 billion bond belongs to Nigerians and it must be shared among the federating units.
"So, we have to find out and take steps. It is either they bring the money and we share it; we take our percentage and they take theirs. The federal government cannot take that money and take it from source and tell us that the money, which belongs to all of us federating units, is its."