In politics everything is an issue for debate. And so it has been that a N10 billion loan being sought by the Kwara State government has elicited a debate which many consider as laced in political colouration.  News of the loan deal broke early last week when members of the state's House of Assembly deliberated on a letter by Governor AbdulFattah Ahmed asking them to approve the proposal to borrow the money from a second generation bank.

Before then however, the Commissioner for Planning and Economic Development, Chief Tunde Adeoti had, while debriefing newsmen on the focus of the 2012 budget for the state indicated that Kwara was abandoning a N30 billion bond it sourced from the capital market towards the end of the last administration in the state.  Although as at the time he did not disclose details about the new deal then, Adeoti however said the incumbent administration has been able to secure a much more favourable deal with a finance house and confirmed that only N17 billion of the N30 billion bond had been collected before the stoppage.

Former governor Bukola Saraki had on July 22, 2009 signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the first tranche of the bond which stood at N17 billion and explained that the bond became necessary to accelerate socio-economic development in Kwara adding that it would go a long way in enhancing long-term funding of capital projects as he noted that the challenges before him were so enormous that the state government could not rely on the federal government allocation alone.

"We entered into agreement for the N30bn bond towards the end of the last administration, and in the processing of the document, we were only able to access about N17bn out of N30bn", Adeoti told reporters, adding: "The procedure and formalities for accepting the bond was dragging till the end of the administration.  Eventually, we got a better deal from a financial bank which on the basis we had to jettison the balance of the bond. That has been taken care in our projection for external loan.  We are taking a loan from a commercial bank."

Details about the loan deal indicate that the state will pay back the N10 billion within the tenure of the incumbent administration. 

Abraham Ashaolu, representing Oke-Ero constituency moved the motion for the approval of the request by Ahmed and was seconded by Suleiman Sunoboro Idris, Ilesha-Gwanara constituency of Baruten Local Government Area of the state.  While Ashaolu said the approval should be timely considered because of the direct benefits of the citizens from the projects to be financed by the loan, Idris, noted that the money was included in this year's budget but cautioned on the need to expend it judiciously.

Projects to be financed by the loan according to the letter read on the floor of the house include Vocational Centre at Ajase Ipo, Kwara State University, Malete, Cargo Terminal, Metropolitan Square, Ilorin Metropolis Water Reticulation Projects, Ultra Modern Diagnostic Centre and International Aviation College, Ilorin.

But while the lawmakers were praising the decision, opposition politicians would not allow the matter go unchallenged. First it was the Alliance for Democracy (AD) that raised its voice against the loan. Then came the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN). While the AD has very little presence in the state, ACN had just lost a gubernatorial petition at the Court of Appeal and had only last week approached the Supreme Court over the matter. 

AD in a statement by its state chairman and secretary, Buliaminu Aliu and Michael Ologunde respectively said there was no need for the loan and if indeed there was a need, the government must indicate a practical breakdown of how it would be expended in order to secure public support for the move.

The party said: "The news that governor Ahmed wants to borrow N10 billion on behalf of Kwarans came to us as a rude shock. The governor's step to borrow such a huge amount of money is premature because the federal government had recently announced the release of N559.1 billion as December 2011 monthly allocation to both states and local government areas in Nigeria. Certainly over N10 billion will be Kwara State's after sharing. We also learnt that Kwara State government got about N9 billion for November 2011 allocation which means that Kwara State government is richer by N20 billion or so within two months. Then why should our governor want to borrow N10 billion?

"We remember that the former governor borrowed N9 billion towards the tail end of his tenure to execute certain projects. We believe Ahmed is not borrowing the N10 billion to complete or execute the same project his predecessor had earlier done. This is because the projects are still new and covered by guarantee.  The AD, Kwara chapter urges the governor to stop the idea of borrowing N10 billion on behalf of the good people of Kwara State. We also appeal to members of the Kwara State House of Assembly to reject, instantly, such proposal from the governor," the party stressed.

The statement however noted that if the government could specify the amount for each project it wants to use the loan to finance and would indicate where the previous government stopped in the execution of the project, then it would be alright to go ahead and obtain it.

On its part and as expected, the ACN did not spare the state government on its disagreement with the loan deal.  The opposition party, in a statement signed by its state chairman, Mr. Kayode Olawepo, fired its arrow of dissent in these words: "We wish to dismiss as sheer profligacy and disrespect for the Kwara public, the decision of the PDP government in the state to borrow N10billion to, as they claim, sponsor some phoney developmental projects. The hurried manner with which the PDP-dominated House of Assembly rushed to approve the request, without any thorough debate or committee works, raises many questions.

"In the first three months of Ahmed's government, between April and June, Kwara alone got more than N16b as federal allocations. Triple that amount has accrued to the state since then; yet, the dearth of infrastructural, for which Kwara is notorious, remains just as bad. We cannot pin those huge funds down to any appreciable capital projects executed by this administration.

"Yet the exact debt profile of Kwara remains the exclusive knowledge of PDP power brokers. Apart from the undisclosed debt profile, the Kwara people, through this administration, are currently servicing the repayment of N17b bond the Saraki administration raised in the guise of providing infrastructure.

"For the record, the Bukola administration claimed to have obtained the bond to execute the following projects within a period of two years beginning from 2009: Kwara State Truck Plaza; International Aviation College; Asa Dam Mixed Use Development; New Secretariat; Commercial Agriculture Phase II; KWASU; Ilorin Water Distribution project; and Kwara Advanced Diagnostic Centre. Of these eight projects the PDP government said it wanted to execute in two years (2009-2011) with the N17b obtained in the name of our people, only three (KWASU, Aviation College and the Diagnostic Centre) can be said to have been executed – and half way too.

"The new N10b from GTB has already been included in the 2012 budget even before seeking the prior approval of the House of Assembly; so the House was railroaded into approving it when lawmakers discovered the amount during budget approval discussion. The repayment period is said to be 42 months at the rate of 15 per cent interest.  The new loan, tagged legacy and continuity loan, is, in the words of the PDP government, for the completion of the same set of projects  which President Goodluck Jonathan had commissioned, and for completion of some road projects and Ilorin Urban System for which billions of naira had been sunk during the  Bukola regime .    

"The people of Kwara cannot be subsiding unaccounted borrowings for which commensurate benefits have not been received by the people. Whilst the act of the borrowing is always known, the spending of the money borrowed has always been shrouded in secrecy. It is on this basis that we reject outright the request and House approval for another N10b loan for phoney projects! It is dubious and indefensible. Both the PDP State Government and GT Bank must be called to account. And in the event that the Ahmed government goes ahead with the plan, we invite all the anti-graft agencies to probe into these matters," the party said.

The opposition's stance made the ruling party to issue its own defence, describing the ACN position as one borne out of ignorance. According to the Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Alhaji Mas'd Adebimpe, the sort of comments from the ACN could only have come from those with little or know knowledge about government and governance.

Adebimpe described the ACN statement as uninformed outburst saying for the ACN to have criticised the state government's decision to borrow funds from the capital market for vital development projects further confirms the position of the party than the ACN has nothing to offer the people of Kwara State.

"How can anyone question the importance of the rehabilitation of hospitals, the establishment of an international vocation centre to empower our youth for employment as well as the completion of the Ilorin Metropolis Water Reticulation Project phase one of which has been completed and is being enjoyed by the people of Kwara State?, the party asked in the statement.

Adebimpe stressed that projects such the Cargo Terminal Apron Project and the International Diagnostic Centre are important components of the government's plan to strengthen Kwara State's emerging reputation as an investment destination and generate employment.

"The state government needs to complete the Apron in order to make the cargo terminal operational and given the investment that has gone into the diagnostic centre, we have no choice but to complete it. And for the ACN's information, a university is a long term project which cannot be completed for as long as the university is in existence. The more this party displays its ignorance about development planning, the more the good people of Kwara State would celebrate their decision to give their mandate to Alhaji AbdulFatah Ahmed," he said.

Adebimpe urged the ACN to stop being such sore losers and abandon the practice of using falsehood and misinformation as instruments of futile propaganda. He questioned the party's practice of describing the Ahmed-led administration as "illegal" when the Election Tribunal and Appeal Courts have upheld the Governor's election and dismissed ACN's petitions.

"The ACN is questioning the competence of the Supreme Court to whom they have taken their petition to adjudicate on the issue. They should be mindful of running foul of the highest court in the land and wait for the court's final decision rather than engaging in potentially libellous and contemptuous pronouncements", he advised.

Another group, Orisun Igbomina, an influential socio- cultural group in Kwara South also joined the fray to condemn those who condemned the loan initiative. President of the group, Chief Gbega Awoyale in a statement described ACN   as a retrogressive party and expressed concern that any sincere Kwaran desirous of the growth and development of the state would condemn the government for borrowing money to finance developmental projects.

"The state government among other things need money to put in place the satellite campuses of the state's University (KWASU) in Osi (Kwara South), and Baruten (Kwara North)", he said, adding: "Besides, the government followed due processes in obtaining the loan. It is on record that Governor AbdulFatah Ahmed sought the approval of the state House of Assembly and got it before obtaining the loan". He asked the opposition in the state to stop politicizing issues affecting the development of the state and government policies geared towards improving the living condition of the people of the state. 

In his view, 'if the ACN members are truly interested in the well being of Kwarans, they should stop politicizing issues geared towards attracting investments to the state.  Rather they should help government in achieving its lofty developmental programmes through constructive criticisms." 
But a resident had a completely different view about the matter. According to him, "Since the lawmakers have approved the governor's request, he will go ahead and obtain the loan. The opposition too have spoken and justified their continued relevance in the state. What the opposition can do is to ensure they monitor the projects enumerated in the governor's letter and then they can talk if there is deviation."