- Safiu Kehinde
President Bola Tinubu has allayed concerns over Nigeria’s increasing debt profile as he defended his recently approved $516 million loan request.
NPO Reported that the National Assembly had yesterday approved the President’s request for the loan set to be taken from the Deutsche Bank to fund the construction of the Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway.
Tinubu had in a letter to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, maintained that the request is in line with Sections 16 and 21 of the Debt Management Office (Establishment) Act, 2011.
This, according to the President, enables the federal government to secure the financing for Sections 1, Phase 1A, and Phase 1B of the project.
The request would be tendered before the House of Representatives during plenary session on Tuesday where it was approved by the green chamber.
Reacting to backlashes and concerns which had since met the approved loan request, Tinubu held that borrowing is inevitable.
The President, in a video posted on X on Wednesday while addressing some officials of his cabinet at the Presidential Villa, maintained that his administration needs to borrow the fund.
“We have to borrow, we will borrow. Borrowing is not a leprosy.” He said in the short clip.
Tinubu stated that his administration will work hard to pay for the loan.
“We just have to work hard to be able to pay for it.” He added.