Niger state House of Assembly, yesterday, gave the nod for Governor Abubakar Sani Bello to access the N4.3 billion bailout funds for the state.
The approval followed a letter sent by the governor to the Assembly which was read by Hon Hussein Ibrahim, the deputy speaker, requesting for permission to access the fund.
The governor, in the letter, stated that the bailout was a loan payable within a timeframe of 20 years with 9 percent interest rate.
The letter said the bailout fund would be used to pay pension liabilities of retirees of the state and local governments which it said run into hundreds of millions and other debts inherited by the incumbent administration.
The governor, in another letter, also requested for a commercial loan of N2.05billion to fund the salaries of the state government staff.
Daily Trust also learnt that the approval for the loan was granted with the presiding speaker directing the clerk to communicate the approval to the governor.
