The attention of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Imo State has been drawn to the action by Imo State House of Assembly (IMHA), granting the request by Governor Hope Uzodinma for a fresh additional loan facility of about N9 billion from Fidelity Bank Plc. And without any recourse to unnecessary equivocation, our Party totally condemned both the request for the loan and its approval by the House.
This was contained by the party’s state publicity secretary Ogubundu Nwadike made available to Crimefacts.news
“It must be stated that with this fresh loan, the borrowing profile of the State through the governor has risen to an alleged over N64 billion since January 2020, when the Supreme Court made him governor, ” Nwadike noted.
“It may be recalled that our Party at a time raised the alert and alarm that Governor Uzodinma was frantically seeking for a N20 billion bond loan. We reported then that after his failed attempts to get any bank to facilitate the bond loan request, the governor got Fidelity Bank Plc to be considering the facilitation of the loan request.
Stressing further, “Our Party sees a very strong connectivity that the bank may have decided to grant the undesirable loan with the collateral of the 13% derivation refund fund as a façade and an alibi, and for bank guarantee to warrant releasing the N9 billion loan.
“Coming at a time the Imo State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (ISOPADEC) is boiling over with protests and office lockdowns for Uzodinma’s non-payment of salaries and allowances, with total suspension and even abandonment of physical infrastructural development of ISOPADEC communities, this loan of N9 billion becomes an untimely and a misplaced borrowing adventure, which will certainly engender enough sorrowing for Imo people of this generation and those yet unborn.
“Truth is that Governor Uzodinma cannot continually run Imo State on borrowed funds. There is a dire need for the State’s Chief Executive Officer to devise plausible ways of growing the State’s economy sustainably, without near total dependence on ill-advised borrowings.
“The situation becomes most worrisome when statutory allocations to the State from the federation account has remained regular and unfailing. It’s even worse with the draconian multiple taxations and levying of Imo people.
“This Party feels that it is too baffling why Governor Uzodinma continually shops around for all manners of loans to borrow, despite the average N15 billion monthly allocations from the federation account plus the average N2 billion IGR, and average N2 billion which he claimed to save from ghost workers and ghost pensioners monthly.
“Unfortunately, despite all the alleged near N250 billion total revenue that has accrued to the State since January 2020, Governor Uzodinma still falls short on non-payment of salaries and pensions, and non-implementation of the N30,000 new minimum wage.
“This State is still sadly taunted with having some of the worst roads in Nigeria. Imo is still the unemployment capital of Nigeria. It is still counted among the highest cost of living States in Nigeria. The healthcare sector has collapsed, while the education sector is comatose, He alleged.
“In spite, of the huge revenue allocations, IGR and loans, poverty, lack, hunger, disease, sickness and death are still rife in Imo State. That’s part of the precarious story of the State under Governor Uzodinma’s watch as at the moment. The big question now is: “To what use are Imo revenue put to?”
“However, Imo PDP would dutifully implore well-meaning Imolites to join the organized opposition to dissuade Governor Uzodinma from his crave and penchant for borrowing, as such policy decision unfortunately mortgages the future of Imo State and Imo people. He must work out other ways of generating revenue other than going and borrowing for developing the State and empowering the people. This Party feels that by so doing that would be beneficial to the State and people, than obnoxious borrowings.
