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Assembly approves Soludo’s N100bn loan request for infrastructure

The Anambra State House of Assembly has approved Governor Charles Soludo’s request to access N100 billion loan from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for infrastructure development.

The approval followed the consideration and adoption of the report of the House Committee on Public Accounts during plenary in Awka, the Anambra State capital on Thursday.

Soludo had, on July 5, written to the Assembly, seeking approval to secure a N100 billion Global Limit Multiple Term Loan Facility from CBN, for the construction and refurbishment of key infrastructure in the state.

Presenting the report, Mr Somto Udeze, representing Ogbaru Constituency ll and Chairman of the committee said the Commissioners for Finance and Economic Planning and Budget were invited for interaction on the terms of the loan facilities.

Udeze said the discussion was to ascertain the terms of the loan, monthly deductions, duration of the loan, the interest rate, project specifications and the current debt profile of the state.

He added that the Committee was satisfied with the answers provided by the commissioners.

“We observed that the N100 billion loan was strictly for the construction of roads, bridges, and flyovers across the state.

“It was also observed that the current debt profile of the state at about N107 billion can still accommodate more of such loans considering the expected outcome and impact on the residents of the state.

“However, we recommended that the Commissioners should provide the list of the proposed project descriptions and expected cost of each project for ease of oversight function subsequently; and that was done.

“That the loan should be secured at single-digit interest rate and be used for feasible infrastructure development alone.

“We also recommend the need for increased internally generated revenue to minimise borrowing to fund infrastructure development in the state,” the lawmaker said.

Meanwhile, some lawmakers lamented that not all the 30 constituencies in the state were captured in the proposed infrastructure upgrade.

The Speaker of the House, Uche Okafor, commended the committee for thorough scrutiny of the loan request and conducted a voice vote for the adoption of the report.

The House, however, granted the governor’s request in a unanimous resolution.
Also at plenary, the House passed a bill to establish the system of Criminal Justice Administration in Anambra and to provide for related matters.

The Bill titled, ‘Administration of Criminal Justice Bill 2022, Repeal and Re-enactment,’ was read for the third time and subsequently passed during plenary.

The Speaker further directed the Acting Clerk, Mrs Esther Anetoh to send a clean copy of the Bill to the State Governor for assent.

The House later adjourned sitting to July 26.

The Star