The Senate on Tuesday blamed the finance minister, Zainab Ahmed, and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Godwin Emefiele, for the delay in reconsidering President Muhammadu Buhari’s request to restructure the apex bank’s N22.7trn loan.
President Buhari had, in December, asked the red chamber to restructure the CBN loan extended to the federal government under its Ways and Means advances to raise the amount to N23.7trn with a tenor of 40 years, three years moratorium on repayment and an interest rate of 9%.
But the request was suspended for lack of details with an ad hoc panel set up to interface with the finance minister and CBN governor for details on the N22.7 trillion loan.
President Buhari, while speaking after signing the 2023 budget, urged the National Assembly to reconsider its position on his proposal to securitise the federal government’s outstanding Ways and Means balance at the CBN.
Speaking on the floor of the Senate on Tuesday, the panel’s chairman, Senator Ibrahim Gobir, said he could not present the report of his committee because the information requested from the finance minister and CBN governor was not available.
He told the Senate that a series of attempts made by the committee to meet the officials for the required details proved abortive.
He said: “As a special committee for urgent and thorough assignment, we hit the ground running immediately after composition on 28th of December last year.
“For required details on the N22.7 trillion Ways and Means restructuring, six vital questions were raised; five for the CBN governor and one for the finance minister, but their trips abroad prevented us from asking them the questions.
“Now that they are around, we request the Senate to give us additional three days for thorough work on the assignment and submission of the report.”
He, therefore, sought more time to turn in the panel’s report.
Senate President Ahmad Lawan in his response said: “If there is a need for the Senate to sit up to Friday this week for thorough consideration and passage of the request, it will be done but the affected officials from the executive must also expedite action on the provision of the required information as regards documents authorising approval and disbursement of the money totaling N22.7 trillion,” he said.
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