Human rights activist and chieftain of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Dr. Olatunji Abayomi, yesterday condemned the Ondo State Government over its plan to raise N30bn from capital market to finance some capital projects, saying “this, of course, would put the people of the state in perpetual financial bondage.” The state government, however, said there was “nothing wrong or strange in sourcing funds from legal channels”, and described the social critic as an alarmist “who is trying to politicize the future development of this state.”
Abayomi, who had earlier raised an alarm on the money that the state wanted to raise which was in the appropriation plan and approved by the state legislature, said “the government, despite the opposition from well-meaning individuals to its idea of borrowing, has now jerked up the debt burden to a frightening N100bn.”
In a statement, Abayomi said the desire of the state government to increase the loan to N100bn would certainly burst the financial health of Ondo State, as the state financial freedom will be imperiled by the gripping debt for a very long time. He said the Dr. Mimikoled administration “had become a desperate money merchant to solve many development problems it created, out of utter failure of thought,” stressing that at least seven major roads remained less than 30% completed over two years after the Mimiko government came to power.
Abayomi wondered why the Mimiko administration was trying to put the state in serious financial mess, despite the fact that his predecessors did not take loans while in office. Reacting through Ranti Akerele, its Commissioner for Information, the government said “Abayomi is an alarmist, who thrives in raising unnecessary alarm.” He said the state government only sourced for N30bn loan to finance some life-changing projects that are dear to the lives of the people of the state and that there was no basis to increase it to N100bn.
Source: National Mirror
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