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Fashola faults Obasanjo’s $12bn cash payment of debt
Modupe Shodeinde
The Minister for Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, has faulted the decision of the Olusegun Obasanjo administration to pay $12 billion in cash to Nigeria’s creditors, out of the $30 billion sovereign debt in 2005.
The Minister who spoke on Thursday, at a town hall meeting organised by Business Hallmark themed; “Nigeria’s infrastructure revolution; Road to a New Future”, said it was a decision he would have vehemently opposed if he was a member of the Federal Executive Council then.
He maintained that tackling infrastructure decay was a higher priority than the repayment of the nation’s debt when the decision was taken.
He argued that such a huge chunk of cash was better channeled into strategic investment in infrastructure, which would have manured Nigeria’s economy for greater exploits.
He further stated that if adequate investments were made in infrastructure, such assets would help repay the loans.
“Our government in 2005 as a matter of policy decided to go and pay debt of $12 billion cash but our house was in very dire need. That was a policy choice. I would have opposed that decision if I was in government because we needed to invest urgently at that time.
“If we had invested, the results of those investments would have earned us more revenues, much more income and would put us in a better position to service those debts. Fast forward to 2015, after paying $12 billion, we are now owing $32 billion.
“We look for the resources, invest them in infrastructure and use the returns to pay back this loan.” He said.
The Minister, said the Buhari administration has taken infrastructure to be a priority to boost the socio-economic fortunes of the country.
He stated that the government was currently implementing 896 road and bridges contracts covering over 13,000km in all the states of the federation.
