Senate invites nine ministers over Buhari’s $22.7b loan request

 Sanni Onogu, Abuja

The Senate on Wednesday summoned nine ministers to defend their ministries’ components of Federal Government’s $22.7 billion external loan request.

Senate President Ahmad Lawan said the affected ministers must appear before the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debt on or before next Monday.

Lawan’s directive followed a complaint by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debt, Clifford Ordia, that the panel could not meet the two-week timeline to submit their report on the loan because nine ministries had failed to defend their proposals.

Some ministers, including those of Information and Culture (Lai Mohammed), Works and Housing (Babatunde Fashola), Federal Capital Territory (Mohammed Bello) and Minister of State for Transportation (Gbemisola Saraki), on Tuesday, defended their requests before the Senate Committee.

Kaduna, Katsina and Kogi State governments also appeared before the committee.

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Ordia said: “It will interest you that out of the 18 beneficiary ministries, only eight have appeared before the committee. I think it is important to note that approving a loan of over $22 billion is a very serious matter.

“We need serious explanation from the ministries to enable us submit our report to the Senate.

“In view of this obvious delay in the ministries’ appearance, we will need another two weeks to enable us make a submission to the Senate.”

The senator listed the defaulting ministers as: Adamu Adamu (Education), Sale Mamman (Power), Senator Godswill Akpabio (Niger Delta Affairs), Sadiya Umar Farouk (Humanitarian and Disaster Management), Suleiman Adamu (Water Resources), Osagie Ehanire (Health), Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami (Communications and Digital Economy) and Sabo Nanono (Agriculture).

Lawan directed the ministries to appear before the committee without fail.

He said: “Let me advise that this Senate is committed to ensuring that such important issue, like the foreign loan request of the Executive, needs to be treated with seriousness by both sides.

“The Senate is making every possible effort to ensure that we understand the request. Therefore, we need details and information so that we take the appropriate decisions as quickly as possible.

“I will urge those ministries that have not appeared before the committee to do so between now and Monday.

“I believe this is an advice that will be taken very seriously by the agencies you have just read out.”