President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has said the lawmakers will approve President Muhammadu Buhari’s request for a fresh loan of $30 billion.
He made the disclosure on Monday at a media briefing with journalists.
Buhari, in November, forwarded a request to the Senate to reconsider and approve the Federal Government’s 2016 to 2018 external borrowing plan.
The loan, he said, was to finance key infrastructural projects across the country between 2016 and 2018.
His message was conveyed in a letter which was read out by the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, at the start of plenary.
But at the two-day public hearing on the 2020 budget organised by the National Assembly, Senator Lawan had cautioned against borrowing to fund infrastructure.
The president of the Senate further advocated a public private partnership (PPP) option to save the country from heavy indebtedness.
He said: “We cannot continue to borrow to build our infrastructure. I belong to that school that believes that where we can have a PPP to build our infrastructure, we should do that.
“I feel that if we can build our roads from Abuja to Kaduna or Kano with private funds and they design a way to collect their money, let us do that.
ALSO READ: Gombe goes green as Gov Inuwa flags-off support operation
“Other countries have done that and it worked. As long as we are not shortchanged, we have to look at it. If we have to borrow, we should borrow, where there is another opportunity we should explore that.”
But in what appears to be a volte face, Senator Lawan said President Buhari gave adequate information on the specific projects the loan was meant for.
Lawan said: “The question of whether we will pass the loan request of the Executive arm of government, yes, we will pass it. If we don’t have money and you have projects to build them, how will you provide infrastructure that you need?
“But one thing is that, we are going to be critical that every cent that is borrowed is tied to a project. These are projects that will have spillover effects on the economy and we will undertake our oversight so well to ensure that such funds are properly, prudently, economically and transparently are applied on those projects.”
He said the same loan was rejected by the 8th Senate because the Executive arm did not give details on the proposed infrastructural projects.
“In 2016, the Senate did not pass the loan request of the Executive at that time and the reason was because there were no sufficient details.”
“I want to inform this gathering and indeed Nigerians that the letter conveying the loan request of the Executive came with every possible detail and in fact we will ensure that we are getting the right information from the Executive arm of Government. So, the situation is not the same.
“In 2016, there were no submission of details. This time, I think the Executive has learnt its lesson and the letter came with sufficient details.”
On the controversial hate speech bill sponsored by Senator Sabi Abdullahi, the president of the Senate said the fate of the bill would be determined by Nigerians as he noted that the bill would be subjected to public hearing.
“The hate speech bill has a life in the democratic activities of Nigeria. Nigerians from all works of life and persuasions have one thing or the other to say to what democracy is all about. The hate speech bill is not going to be passed without the deserving public hearing, so we have the opportunity to go there with our arguments whether we like it or do not want it.”
“I want to assure you that the preponderance of opinions of Nigeria will determine the way the hate speech bill and any other bill goes in the Senate and in the National Assembly.”