From Joseph Uchenna, in Makurdi
The Benue State House of Assembly on Friday approved a request from the Executive Governor of Benue State Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Iormem Alia to obtain a100 Billion Naira loan to finance infrastructural projects in the State.
The House took the decision during an emergency sitting presided over by the Speaker Hon Alfred Emberga .
According to the letter sent to the house and read by the Speaker, the one hundred billion loan is to finance some development projects.
They include renovation and equipping of the 23 General Hospitals in the State, renovation and building science schools across the State, completion of ongoing roads, bridges, drainages and electricity projects, building of skills acquisition centers, building and equipping smart schools in all the federal Constituencies in the State and for the construction, building and equipping the Benue State University of Agriculture, Science and Technology Ihugh Vandeikya local government, the Governor’s area, amongst others.
The House unanimously approved the request based on its critical needs for the State, urging the State Government to use the funds judiciously for the development and progress of Benue State.
Meanwhile, the Peoples’ Democratic Party PDP has strongly condemned the assembly’s approval of 100 billion loan for Governor Hyacinth Alia describing it as ‘hasty’ and ‘ill-considered’
PDP in a press statement signed by its Publicity Secretary Tim Nyor and made available to the media lamented that it is reckless fiscal adventure which is both unjustifiable and insensitive to the prevailing economic realities facing the people of Benue State.
The party said, “Since the removal of fuel subsidies, there has been a historic and unprecedented increase in monthly allocations to states across the federation. The Alia administration has received colossal sums from the Federation Account, running into several hundreds of billions of naira, for both state and local governments.
“Against this backdrop, the decision to plunge Benue into another cycle of debt raises grave questions about transparency, accountability, and fiscal discipline.
“What, precisely, is the purpose of this loan? Under what provisions of the 2025 budget does this colossal borrowing find justification? And what measures have been put in place to ensure that the funds, if indeed accessed, will serve the collective interest of Benue people rather than disappear into opaque channels of political patronage and contract inflation?
“This alarming pattern of borrowing without clear justification suggests a government bereft of sound financial judgment and driven by short-term expediency.
“The PDP strongly warns that Benue State cannot continue to be mortgaged to satisfy the whims of a few. Future generations must not be condemned to paying debts incurred without their consent and without corresponding developmental value.
“We therefore call on the Benue State House of Assembly to retrace its steps and act in the true spirit of checks and balances, rather than as a mere rubber stamp of the executive.
History will not absolve any institution or individual that aids the reckless plundering of our collective patrimony.
“The PDP remains committed to defending the interests of the Benue people and will continue to expose every act of financial impropriety, misgovernance, and deceit perpetrated under the guise of governance”.
