Director General of Voice of Nigeria and chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Osita Okechukwu, has responded to a statement credited to the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, where he decried Nigeria’s rising debt profile.
Ekweremadu had, at the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) national convention, which held last Saturday, scored the All Progressives Congress-led administration low on security, economy, job-creation, and national unity.
He described the 16 years leadership of the PDP as ‘glorious’ years for the country, and noted that ‘good men and women’ who left PDP for the APC are eager to return to join and build a better Nigeria.
But, Okechukwu said he was particularly surprised that Ekweremadu had the effrontery to query President Muhammadu Buhari for borrowing interest free Sukuk N100 billion loan, to fix the Enugu-Onitsha Highway and similar projects across the Federation,
“Our debt profile is rising because of the profligacy of my brother, Senator Ike Ekweremadu and his PDP co-travellers, who squandered our patrimony raked during the oil boom era.
“What I am saying is that Buhari is borrowing to construct standard gauge railways and other critical social and physical infrastructure, while the PDP government borrowed $8.3 billion for old gauge of about 1,400 kilometres Kano-Lagos.
“At the same time, when the PDP borrowed, between 2002-2005, the Chinese did Golmud-Lhasa standard gauge of higher altitude of 1,142 kilometres at $4.2 billion. This is PDP in action.”
“Please, kindly tell Ekweremadu that had they constructed the $23 billion, three Greenfield refineries which they awarded to the Chinese on May 13, 2010, Buhari won’t be borrowing to import refined petroleum products today.
“They should refund us siphoned public finance (funds).”