The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Edo

  • Edo Fertiliser plant set to begin commercial production

    One of the achievements being bandied by supporters and admirers of former Governor Lucky Igbinedion was the construction of a Fertiliser Blending Plant in Auchi, Estako West Local Government Area. The supporters were quick to criticise immediate past Governor Adams Oshiomhole for failing to revitalise the plant built and commissioned by Igbinedion for the purpose of jobs creation.

    It was in 2003 that former President Olusegun Obasanjo commissioned the fertiliser plant but unknown to Obasanjo, bags of fertilisers displayed at the plant during the commissioning were purchased from the open market and rebagged on site. It was gathered that the plant was not working because one of the Chinese technical partners pulled out over an untidy contractual agreement and the mainframe computer unit which controls all the operations of the plant was reportedly stolen.

    Former Commissioner for Agriculture during Oshiomhole’s administration, Hon Abdul Oroh had this to say about the fertiliser plant, “If you look at the fertiliser company in Auchi, most of the equipment installed at the point of commissioning were all fraudulent because they were outdated and not useful and fertiliser were procured from somewhere and released as being products of the company.”

    However, 17 years after, the Edo Fertiliser Blending Plant is set to begin commercial production under the Godwin Obaseki administration. The plant has been revived and it targeted to produce 55,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser annually.

    The quest to revitalise the plant began in January when Obaseki led the Director-General of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, Mr. Uche Orji and the President Fertiliser Producers Association of Nigeria, Mr. Thomas Etu, to the plant site with a view to reviving it to meet the Federal Government target of creating 250,000 jobs from all the 38 fertiliser blending plants across the country.

    Orji told reporters that the visit to the fertiliser plant was part of the Presidential Initiative on Fertiliser (PIF) whose purpose was to ensure that farmers in the country buy fertiliser at N5,500 before the next planting season.

    According to him, “Edo is one of the investors in the SWF. We are working on the PIF to import some components of fertiliser from Morocco and revive blending plants in the country.

    “The net effect is to create jobs and for farmers to get fertiliser for as low as N5,500. With this type of facilities in the state, Edo state has been missing lots of opportunities with a factory like this.

    “Once the governor and the investors have agreed, I don’t think it will take too long to get this plant running. Our objective as the governor has mentioned, is to put the raw materials into this plant and have it to start working.

    “The president has presidential initiative for fertiliser, and the idea is instead of importing finished fertiliser, we bring in the component and blend it locally. If you do that, price will come down significantly and luckily, Edo is a state that has lots of raw materials needed.

    “So this should be a natural advantage for Edo State to start which will employ alot of people. It will also at the same time, bring alot of advantages with it; bring down the prices of fertiliser for the farmers that is the idea of the presidential special programme,’’ he said.

    On his part, President of Fertiliser Producers Association of Nigeria, Mr. Thomas Etuh, explained that the initiative was to encourage local blending of fertilisers with a view to create jobs and save foreign exchange. Thomas said Nigeria will be saving $300m in foreign exchange in 2017 and $120bn in terms of subsidy on fertiliser.

    Last week, Obaseki accompanied by his Deputy, Philip Shaibu, visited the fertiliser plant of ascertain the level of work done. He was shown round the facility by Mr Ayodele Ejaoye, the General Manager of the Technical Company managing the fertiliser plant.

    Obaseki inspected the power plant, production line, storehouse, administrative building and the new line. He was assured that the plant was capable of producing seven tons of fertiliser per hour and prepared to be test run by mid June while commercial production starts by June ending.

    Addressing reporters after the inspection, Obaseki said the plant would employ about 120 direct and indirect workers when it became operational.

    Obaseki disclosed that talks were on with the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), to draw a dedicated 33KVA line to the plant in addition to standby 500KVA generating set that has been refurbished at the plant.

    He said :“I am quite impressed with the progress of work here because if you compared the situation now to what we met about two and half months ago, when we came here first, you’d find that there is significant difference.

    “We have been able to get the technical partners under the federal government fertiliser programme to start work here and they have made investment to revamp the plant. The equipment have been tested and manufacturers were brought to fix the faulty parts. They are also constructing a new line to meet up with the specification of the federal government fertiliser programme.”

  • High rent fuels street trading in Edo

    High rent fuels street trading in Edo

    Street trading is a menace, which many a government struggles to beat. In Edo State, the government of Governor Godwin Obaseki  is fighting to end this poverty-induced practice, write Osagie Otabor and Yusuff Ibrahim

    Do you want a shop in any market in Benin City? Simply walk into any market, any empty shop you see, break it open if it is under lock and forcefully start selling your wares. Anybody that comes to harass you or ask you to leave, report back with the person to our office. That is the message from officials of Oredo Local Government Area to individuals or traders seeking shops at various markets in Benin City.

    But, are shops really available at the market?

    Many were recently sacked from engaging in street trading at the Oba Ovoranmen Square, the Oba Market Road and over ten adjoining streets. Today the streets around the Oba market are clean and motorable. Some of the street urchins who hitherto collected money from the street traders were arrested and remanded in prison custody. But street trading still thrives in other parts of the city like Third junction, New Lagos Road, roads around New Benin Market, Oliha markets, Uwa market and Edaiken market.

    The sacked street traders were asked to go and find shops inside the Oba Market and other markets within Benin City metropolis. Acting General Manager of the Edo State Waste Management Board, Prince Aiyamenkhue Akonofua, told reporters after the street traders were sacked that leaders of the various markets had been urged to make space available for the displaced street traders inside the markets.

    Akonofua dismissed claims by the street traders that there were no available stores at the various markets or where stores are available, the prices are too high for the traders to pay.

     

    High rent, empty shops

    Checks by our reporters showed that empty shops abound in all the markets in Benin City but people prefer to sell in the streets because of the high cost of getting a shop inside the markets. There are 11 markets in Oredo local government and other major market are the Edaiken market and Egor market. Shops in the markets are allotted to rich individuals who in turn gave them out at exorbitant prices to the petty traders.

    The official annual price to secure a shop at the markets varies. In the Oba market, double lock up shops go for N20,000 while squatters pay N18,500. In other markets in Oredo, the price ranged from N12,000 to N18,000 annually. When our reporter visited Oredo Secretariat to inquire on how to get a shop. A woman at the desk said shops are not allotted by the council officials but by the shop managers. When questioned about payment, she said: “You don’t pay to us. We only deal with the managers (shop owners). They are the one to pay to us.”

    A visit to the Oba Market  showed another scenario. A shop owner, whose identity could not be ascertained, demanded N100,000 annual pay, including kola nuts and drinks for lock up shops. For an open stall whose official price goes for N5,400, the owner demanded N80,000. Many of the shops were under lock and key. The top floor of the market is mainly not occupied.

    At the Agbado market on Akpakpava Street, many shops were also seen to be under lock and key. A shop owner said she would only manage to give out a shop for N50,000 besides other things like kola nuts, drinks and sometimes yams.

    It was gathered that the bold move by  Obaseki to sack the traders from the street had made officials of Oredo council to undertook verification of the actual shop owners. A source said the verification exercise had showed that the council did not know who owns which shop and those managers that have not paid up to date. This account for the reason they asked prospective traders to go scout for empty shops themselves.

    Besides the high price of securing shops, most of the markets have not been refurbished for many years now. Modern facilities are lacking in many of the markets. Motor parks that used to exist in markets like New Benin and Osa are no longer there. The markets that were built in the 1980s could no longer cope with the growth in population.

    The official in charge of allocating market shops in Oredo, Comrade Agbons Uyigue, dismissed allegations that it was difficult to secure shops at markets in the locality. He said there were over 400 empty stores at the Oba market that traders are yet to occupy.

    He said: “If you are a trader and you see any stores that are locked unoccupied in any of our markets, then move in. That has been the council’s policy for six years now. If you see any empty store in the market, enter the shop and start trading. If anybody challenges you then you and the person should bring the matter to the council and the council would take it up from there.

    “There was a time we realised some of these traders were being asked to pay high amount of money by some store owners and we stopped them. We told the store owners that you cannot secure these stores from the government at low prices only for you to begin to lease them out to traders at exorbitant rates.

    “It is only when they pack into an empty store and somebody comes to drive them away, it is then that they can have a legitimate complaint. Let them move into any of the empty stores and if anyone prevents them, they will know if the council is docile.

    “If they have a legitimate claim, let them move into any empty stores in the Oba market and let us see who will drive them away.”

    He however refused to state how much the council generates annually from market rates.

    A trader at the Oba market, who simply gave her name as Glory, said it was difficult to get a good shop. She said many of the available shops were used as warehouse to store goods.

    Josephine Irabor, a tailor at the market, said: “The reason why some traders do not occupy the shops here is because of the low sales at this side of the market. Buyers or customers rarely come here to patronize us. Therefore the low sales here really discouraged many traders from occupying the stores here.

    “Apart from this reason, the nature of their trade products or commodities is perishable in nature. If they keep them in the stores within few days, they would get perish. Such traders would definitely not rent stores stores here but prefer to operate in the open places such as roadsides for people to see and patronize their products before they get spoilt.

    “For those who trade items such as clothes or wears believe that their goods must be displayed on the major roads to gain buyers attentions.”

    To Mrs. Joy Godwin, “Most of the stores you see here are leaking. When rain starts you will realize that many stores here need to be renovated. Infact, many of the traders have to spend up to N10,000 to stop the leakages in their stores. I had to leave the store I was occupying before and move to this place because of the leakages.

    “How can someone selling petty goods rent stores upstairs at the Oba market? Look at the structure of the market. What about those whose total money they use for  businesses are not more than 5,000 naira? Do u expect those set of people to also rent stores in the Oba market?

    “In my own view, I would strongly suggest the government should create or make provision for that category group of petty traders. It is not about chasing them to the store. They should create open space for such traders to trade.”

    Another cloth seller, who refused to give her name, said: “To get a small store here varies between 20000-30,000 naira. Most of the traders here did not get the shops directly from the government but rather from the stores owners who got the shops directly from the government. It is these stores owners that determine the shops rates based on the original rates they got them from the council.

    “The reason why many traders did not occupy many stores in the Oba market is the problem of accessibility. The stair cases and pathways  that lead to the stores have been blocked by traders and their goods therefore not allowing passers-by and people to have access to most of the stores in the market. So because of this reason, many traders are discouraged from occupying the shops in the market.

    “Traders in this market are not organised like markets in my place where I came from. Over there, you dare not put your goods on the way or path ways.”

  • Anxiety in Edo over commissioners’ list

    Anxiety in Edo over commissioners’ list

    There is anxiety in Edo State over the make-up of Governor Godwin Obaseki’s executive council.

    Obaseki last month promised that he would name his cabinet before the end of the month.

    To ensure grassroots participation in the selection of political appointees, Obaseki asked the party structure from the ward to the local government to submit names following certain criteria he spelt out.

    A committee headed by Prof. Dennis Agbonlahor was set up to screen the names forwarded by the political party structure and to also look into areas of dispute where two different lists were submitted.

    The Agbonlahor-led committee submitted the list of Commissioner nominees in April while the list of those to be appointed Special Assistants and Senior Special Assistants were submitted in May.

    It was while receiving the list in May that Obaseki promised that his cabinet would be named by May ending.

    Last week, Obaseki announced the appointment of 192 Special Assistants representing the 192 wards in the state.

    He clearly told the SAs that they would work from their various wards and not the Government House in Benin City.

    Supporter of APC were surprised that the House of Assembly on Wednesday embarked on a two-weeks recess without mentioning whether the Commissioners’ list has been sent to it for screening.

    Two meetings of Edo APC caucus held to finalise the list were said to have ended in deadlock.

  • Gov.  Obaseki visits families of deceased women allegedly murdered by herdsmen

    Gov.  Obaseki visits families of deceased women allegedly murdered by herdsmen

    Gov. Godwin Obaseki of Edo on Wednesday evening visited and condoled the families of two women who were allegedly murdered by suspected Fulani Herdsmen in Ewu on May 22, in the Esan-Central Local Government Area.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the deceased are: Mrs. Christiana Ariu of Eko-Ujeme quarters and Mrs. Matina Emoyon of Uzogolo quarters, both in Ewu.

    The governor said that security had been beefed up in the area and in neighbouring communities stretching to Kogi, in order to avoid the occurrence of similar incidents in the area.

    Obaseki said that the ravaging activities of Fulani herdsmen had become a threat to national security, adding that the Federal Government was doing something about it.

    The governor said that the state was currently working out its modalities to curtail the activities of criminals who disguised as herdsmen in the state.

    He urged communities to avail the government with intelligence information about security threats in their areas.

    “We are coming up with certain measures to prevent what has just happened from happening again in the future.

    “We will be relying on every community to give us information on time, so that we can curb such situations before it happens again.

    “If we had known that people have been in the bush with their cattle for a few weeks, we would have dislodged them from there.

    “If it is to feed their cattle, then we will come up with methods where anybody who brings cattle can take them to a particular place, where everyone knows that they are there and the cattle cannot roam around,’’ the governor said.

    Obaseki assured the families of the bereaved of the state government support.

    Speaking on behalf of the Ariu family, Mr. Sydney Ikhajiagbe, said that late Ariu was allegedly murdered by Fulani herdsmen while she was working on her farmland.

    Ikhajiagbe said that foot prints of cattle were traced to the spot where the deceased was raped and murdered in her farm.

    He said members of the community now lived in fear, after the incident.

    “We are so scared about our lives that so many of us have abandoned their farmlands.

    “Security should be beefed up in this community and in the neighbouring communities as well,’’ he said.

    NAN recalls that the incidents happened on May 22.

  • We are in a hurry to develop Edo – Shuaibu

    We are in a hurry to develop Edo – Shuaibu

    The Godwin Obaseki-led APC government in Edo, says it is in a hurry to bring all round development to nooks and crannies of the State.

    Deputy Governor Philip Shaibu of Edo gave the assurance in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Benin on Wednesday.

    “We are actually in a hurry to develop every aspect of Edo economy. This is because the shoes that Adams Oshiomhole left behind are very big for us to fit into.

    “We therefore need to redouble our efforts and that is what the governor is doing. We promised Edo people that we are going to beat the records of Adams Oshiomhole.

    “And the only way we can conveniently fit into those big shoes he left behind is to double our efforts.

    “That is why we christened the 2017 budget a Budget of Consolidation and Prosperity.

    “What we are consolidating on is the infrastructural development that the last administration left behind.

    “The prosperity in it is that we are taking advantage of the infrastructure and the one we are building to open up the economy of Edo State.

    “We will generate employment and that employment is what will bring about prosperity’’, Shuaibu said.

    He also told NAN that the State Government would explore “Edo’s natural habitat to drive the economy. We have decided to take advantage of our geographical location’’, he said.

    Shaibu said the state government was poised to reduce unemployment to a minimal level, adding that the
    administration had started the employment-generation process with the establishment of the Edo Job Registration.

    “Very soon, we are rolling out a major first set. Already, employment has been on.

    “But we want to have the one we call a bang and from our statistics, we are already working toward achieving the minimum of 200,000 jobs that we promised Edo people.’’

    Shaibu added that the state government would revolutionise agriculture.

    “We want to bring Edo state back to the limelight that it used to be in the area of agriculture’’, he said.

    He disclosed the state government was already partnering experts and had established companies to develop the rubber plantation and the processed palm oil sub-sector.

    “We are bringing back our natural endowment; the untapped limestone and other minerals because we are in a hurry to get them back to contribute to our gross domestic product and infrastructure.

    Shaibu stressed that the state government would rather go about its developmental efforts quietly than resort to what he called noise making in the media.

    “We said everything we needed to do during the campaign. Now is time to work and you do the talk. That is what we are doing presently’’, he said. (NAN)

  • Two soldiers arrested for sacking mobile court in Edo

    Two soldiers have been arrested in Edo State for allegedly disrupting the sitting of a mobile court at the Oba Ovoranmen Square in Benin, the state capital.

    The mobile court was set up to prosecute traders caught selling on the walkways and in the streets near the popular square.

    Five soldiers allegedly stormed the mobile court after a retired soldier failed to secure the release of his wife, who was arrested and was about to be arraigned before the court.

    Sources said policemen attached to the mobile court resisted the soldiers and there was an exchange of gunfire.

    The source said the soldiers overpowered the policemen and scattered the mobile court.

    The soldiers reportedly overturned the seats and canopies while they freed suspects on trial.

    Acting Managing Director of Edo State Waste Management Board, Prince Aiyamenkhue Akonofua, said several people were injured in the melee.

    The agency chief said presiding Magistrate Ihenyen Aigbediofe was guided to safety.

    Hen said two of the soldiers were arrested, adding that Police Commissioner Haliru Gwandu had pledged that the law would take its course.

    Police spokesman Moses Nkombe, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), confirmed the arrest of the soldiers.

    The spokesman said the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) had taken over the investigation.

    He added: “It is true. The soldiers went to the mobile court to free some suspects. Our policemen resisted them.”

    Also, authorities of 4 Brigade of the Army yesterday confirmed the arrest of the soldiers.

    The brigade’s spokesman Captain Mohammed Maidawa said anyone found culpable would be made to face the law.

  • Edo: Renaissance afoot?

    Edo: Renaissance afoot?

    In Benin City, there is a sweet whiff of Lagos.

    In Lagos,  Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, like the Biblical David, came and fought all the battles, state and federal, to soundly establish the Lagos neo-political economy.

    Two “Solomons” after, in Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN (2007-2015) and Akinwunmi Ambode (2015-date), that “kingdom” is so solidly anchored.

    At 50, Lagos is the toast of everyone nationwide, taking public service delivery to dizzying heights, despite Nigeria’s stifling unitary-federalism.

    Everyone loves a winner, don’t they?

    In Edo, Governor Adams Oshiomhole (2008-2016) came, in his own biting though apt words, to “slay the Edo godfathers”.

    Those self-made “gods” not only shared and gobbled the common patrimony, they also beggared the metropole of the old Mid-West (created in 1963) to near-destitution.

    The comrade-governor was a political cross-breed: between a nation-famous Labour agitator (the street “rofo-rofo” skills of which he put to telling use, in his many Edo political battles); and the conventional, street-wise politician (with the abiding trust-deficit).

    But new governor, Godwin Obaseki, dawns with neither asset — nor liability — that comes with a political mix-breed.

    He is the quintessential “technocrat”, that set not a few drooling, with great expectations of immaculate policy; away from empty politicking.  That builds trust.

    But “technocrat”, in contemporary Nigeria, could also connote soulless opportunism.  The conventional politician must take all the electioneering heat, so the so-called technocrat could push his divine right, to play god in the government’s policy chambers!

    So, after the street-buzzing charisma of Oshiomhole, how does Obaseki ease into the fray, even after a gruelling electioneering for governor?  In other words, would Oshiomhole play the politics for Obaseki, just as Tinubu did for Fashola in Lagos?

    Not exactly, though there appears a clear parallel of continuity, ala Lagos,  of which Oshiomhole is the spiritual head.

    For starters, the new governor enjoys the buffer of consummate politicians: Deputy Governor, Comrade Philip Shaibu, ex-House of Representatives;  Secretary to the State Government (SSG),  Osarodion Ogie; lawyer-politician and Edo APC chairman,  Anslem Ojezua, as well as the robust political mobilization machinery of the Oshiomhole years.

    But behind that fount is a new politics-friendly nest, carefully woven to properly position the governor.

    Yes, Obaseki would retain his core as a policy wonk; but not the distant and cold type.  Rather, it’s the policy wonk that glows in Edo streets, bolstered with as much political buy-in as possible, factored into government policies, no matter how sweeping.

    According to Prof. Julius Ihonvbere, interacting with a select group of visiting top editors and columnists, this elaborate arrangement, anchored on the “Oshiomhole foundation, but in a different way and perspective”, comprises the governor’s personal representative, in every ward in the state.

    These ward gubernatorial special assistants transmit policy in the lingo the grassroots understand; and obtain prompt feedback to the governor.

    In the loop, of this political communication buzz, are the traditional party channels as ward, zonal and state chairs and their executives, special interest groups as the women caucuses, the party’s parliamentary caucuses, traditional rulers, local guilds, Labour unions, and religious lobbies.

    As a result, there is extensive party consultation at every policy baking session, closer party-government fusion for appointments, especially of would-be commissioners, and a robust strategic dialogue with the people, across party lines.

    That about sums up the elaborate political infrastructure, for a policy-wonk governor, to mainstream his policies and make them glow with popular appeal.

    Still, would-be commissioners, more than six months after taking office?  Whatever happened to the popular cliche of hitting the ground running?

    Well, going by inputs from top government and party hierarchs, the Obaseki government had indeed “hit the ground running” — but not by barging in on the public, but by rigorous thinking to conceive and re-tool, as prelude to sure-footed service delivery.

    Everyone that interacted with the visiting journalists made this point: Mr. Ogie, current SSG; Prof. Ihonvbere, ex-SSG; Mrs. Gladys Idaho, Head of Service; Mr. Ojezua, Edo APC chairman; Joseph Eboigbe, Obaseki’s deputy in the Oshiomhole policy think-tank and now policy shaft in the new government; Edo Works Ministry’s Ferguson Enabulele, a key driver of the new government’s road policy, with its stress on the concrete technology and 100 per cent local inputs; and Dennis Oloriegbe, ex-LASTMA and Edo’s new traffic czar, as head of the new Edo State Traffic Management Authority (EDSTMA), among others.

    Indeed, since the November 2016 swearing-in of the new governor, Edo has morphed into a caravan of workshops, importing experts in different fields, from all parts of the country, to help forge a comprehensive policy roadmap for the new government.

    That strategic dialogue has not only shaped the new administration’s vision, but also envisioned the profile of the putative cabinet, and, in the new spirit of government-party close collaboration, given the party wards enough notice to shop for sharp minds, with stellar character, to fill the incoming cabinet.

    That charter, however, comes with clear-cut short, medium and long-terms goals, which a cabinet member must meet, or resign — or be fired.

    The policy thrust, according to these hierarchs, targets mass job creation through massive investment in large-scale agriculture, without sacrificing the interest of traditional small-scale farmers; a land-banking system, complete with data on soil texture, which matches crop cultivation with suitable land; enhanced security; gas-powered electricity; massive waterworks; affordable housing, massive road construction (“no economy without roads”, one of them quipped); and a vibrant traffic management system, complete with modern bus stops and termini, and well-trained traffic marshals.

    But the most exciting part of the Edo policy roadmap has got to be the new stress on technical education to raise a corps of skilled artisans — electricians, plumbers, carpenters, masons, auto-mechanics, and skilled road construction gangs — courtesy of a re-tooled Edo Technical College, complete with an industrial park that, the Obaseki government figures, would seamlessly absorb its products.

    Still on technical and artisanal competence, remember Sandra Aguebor, she of the famous Lady Mechanic Initiative (LMI) fame?  She has set up shop, with her girls, adjunct to Government House, the czarina of the garage that fixes vehicles in the Edo Government’s fleet!

    Surely, some Edo Renaissance is afoot?

    Maybe.  But that is if the Obaseki government walks the talk of its elaborate planning, in pin-point service delivery.

    Still, watch it, Lagos!  If its plan works out,  Edo is gunning for Number 1!

    That can’t be bad for pre-restructured Nigeria, can it?

     

  • Generator fumes kills three in Edo

    Generator fumes kills three in Edo

    Three persons have died of generator fumes at Agharese Adu street off Sapele road in Ikpoba-Okha local government area in Edo State.

    The deceased were found dead by two other occupants of the flat at about 3am on Sunday morning.

    It was gathered that two ladies were visitors of the boy who was found naked in his room.

    One of the deceased female was found dead lying in the lobby, while the other was lying down on the bed with her shoes on.

    It was gathered that it was the brothers of the deceased male that returned home from a party that raised alarm when he found the corpse.

    As at press time, the bodies of the deceased have been taken to the morgue by policemen from Etete Police Division.

    The generator from which the fume emerged was found in the kitchen of the house.

    Spokesman for the Edo State Police Command, DSP Moses Nkombe, confirmed the incident and said investigation would unravel what cause of the death.

    He said it was a case of sudden and natural death.

    “Until doctors report comes out, it is like they died of generator fume. One of the occupants of the room died. The flat is occupied by three boys. The two senior ones went to a party and when they returned, they saw that the door was locked. They had to raise alarm.”

  • Edo’s debt profile: Dynamics of govt finance

    Statistics have a deft way of creating one impression or the other, sometimes for good, and at other unwelcome times, for bad.

    The latest Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) Quarterly Review shows

    Nigeria’s debt profile and indicates a drastic drop in the revenue profile of most states of the federation. In the Southsouth, the report ominously avers that the debt profile of the state governments is on the increase, consisting of domestic and external debts between December 2015 and June 30th, 2016.

    For instance, Lagos state has the highest cumulative debt of N603.25 billion as against the state’s revenue of N410.5bn for 2016. The second on the debt table is Delta State with N331.95 billion growing debt as against N142.78 of the state revenue. Akwa Ibom State occupied the fourth place on rising debt profiles with N161.23 billion.

    What cannot be ignored in the NEITI report is that it clearly vindicates Edo State on both domestic and foreign debts. The World Bank loan Edo State took is cheaper to service and attracts about 1% interest rate compared to domestic borrowing that attracts 18% interest

    rate. The report maintained that “considering that most states already have a high debt burden,

    the possibility of even higher debts for the states remain quite high.”

    Among the subnational governments, Lagos, Kaduna, Edo, Cross River and Ogun states retained the top spots on the list of foreign debtors. If Nigerian external debt accounts for 20% of Nigeria’s debt profile, how does Edo’s debt constitute one of the highest? Is 20% more than 80%? Is the external debt stock of $11.41 billion (N3.48trillion) which accounted for 20%

    more than the domestic debt stock of $45.98 billion (N13.88trillion), which accounted for 80%?

    A clarification is necessary here. The total debt profile of $57.39bn is made up of external debt stock of $11.41 billion (N3.48trillion) which accounts for 20% and domestic debt stock of $45.98 billion (N13.88 trillion) which accounts for 80%. The external debt of 20% cannot amount to the highest.

    Analysts should stop categorising Edo State as the most indebted states in Nigeria. The rate of the rise in foreign debt has been slower than that of domestic debt. In recent times, the Federal Government has been making attempts to increase the proportion of foreign debt, because of the higher interest rate charged on domestic debts.

    Edo State is just as privileged as Lagos state in Sub-Saharan Africa to access World Bank loans at less than 1% for 20 years, and in some cases, 10-year moratorium.

    For a shared understanding of Nigeria’s domestic debt, a major source of concern is that Nigeria’s public domestic debt has experienced rapid growth over the past 10 years and that debt service outlay is quite high. The domestic debt-GDP ratio is only about 10%; the total public debt-GDP ratio is 12.25%, and compares favourably with the peer group threshold of 56%.

    Although the debt service-revenue ratio is high, the problem needs to be unbundled so we can all agree on the appropriate solution path. Indeed, following the rebasing of Nigeria’s GDP in 2010, the DMO observed that the increase in the GDP did not enhance the country’s ability to service its debts.

    Nigeria’s tax revenue-GDP ratio is still below 6% compared to the average for the country’s peer group, which is 18%. Essentially, therefore, from this perspective, what is being experienced is a revenue problem which impacts the debt service-revenue ratio.

    Already the Federal Government is set to raise its domestic and foreign borrowing ratio under the new Debt Management Strategy (DMS) unveiled by the DMO for the next four years. The DMS is about how funds are borrowed, internally and externally. It is a medium term project from 2016 to 2019 setting out the broad guidelines for four years. A review of the new debt strategy shows that it would slant significantly in favour of external borrowing than domestic borrowing.

    As Mr. Nwankwo said domestic and external borrowings would now be in the ratio of 60:40 per cent as against the previous ration of 84:16 per cent respectively. The new borrowing strategy, he explained further, would progressively increase the percentage share of external financing, taking into account the need to moderate foreign exchange risk in the short to medium term.

    He said the reason for the shift towards more external borrowing was because external borrowing was cheaper, apart from the advantage of lower cost of fund to avoid the risk of crowding out the private sector.

    Only Edo, Lagos, Delta, Ebonyi, Anambra, Cross River, Akwa Ibom,  Kano and Enugu states have paid their workers’ salaries and allowances up to April and are therefore not owing their workers.

    From the foregoing, there can be no doubt that Edo State is on the right path with its borrowing for the development of the state. It is one borrowing ideal that does not commit the state to punitive debt burden that generation unborn will have to bear.

    • Cephas sent this piece from Benin City

  • Edo reps pledge support for Okpekpe road race

    A total of 26 members of the House of Representatives yesterday participated in the annual 10km Okpekpe road race held in Edo State.

    The lawmakers participated in the Very Important Persons (VIP) categories where participants run to support a cause.

    Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Works, Dr. Amuda-Kanmile Abubakar told newsmen after the race that he would sponsor people to participate in next year’s Okpekpe road race.

    Dr. Abubakar said he would join to advertise the race for more international athletes to participate.

    He noted that that the road race would boost tourism potentials of the country.

    His words, “This Okpekpe road besides the race is unique. You see beauty of nature.

    I will soon for people to run for a cause next year.”

    A member of the House Committee of Sports, Hon Awaji-Inombel Abiante, said this year’s edition was well organized.

    He said, “This is the kind of thing we should develop. I believe that a lot of things will be brought in in subsequent editions.”