Southern, Middle Belt leaders reject $27bn external borrowing

Leaders and elders of Southern and Middle Belt under the aegis of Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum (SMBLF) have asked the federal government to rescind plans to borrow $27billion recently approved by the National Assembly.

At the end of an extraordinary meeting chaired by elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark, the forum rejected the continued external borrowing by the government, which has raised the country’s external debt to over $80 billion.

This was contained in a communiqué issued at the end of the forum’s meeting in Abuja made available to our correspondent yesterday, jointly endorsed by Clark; Chief Ayo Adebanjo (Co-Chairman and Afenifere Leader); Chief Nnia Nwodo, President, Ohaneze Ndigbo; Air Commodore Idongesit Nkanga (rtd), National Chairman, PANDEF; Dr. Pogu Bitrus, President, Middle Belt Forum and Secretary of the forum, Mr. Yinka Odumakin.

The forum said Nigeria would not have business engaging in “reckless” borrowing if not for bad governance, saying “Even then, the meeting rejects the lopsided allocation of the proceeds of the huge latest external borrowing plan where the South East of the country is totally excluded.”

The SMBLF

further expressed “Grave concern over the deteriorating State of the nation in particular as it pertains to the continued assault on peace and security leading to the continuous deaths of countless lives of Nigerians every day.”

They also rejected the “continued lopsided appointments within the federal government where only certain sections of the country are given priority over others as against the extant constitutional provisions.”

The leaders also congratulated the South West for setting up the Amotekun security initiative and noted “with satisfaction the robust plans being made in the Middle Belt, South East and the South-South to take similar steps.”