Senate to probe N1.9 Trillion Paris Club Refund to state Govs

Olufemi Samuel, Abuja

Senate may have indicated its resolve to probe the tranches of Paris Club so far released to state governors as bail out, all totalling N1.9 trillion by the government of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Paris Club refund is in respect of over-deductions on loans from Paris Club, London Club Loans and Multilateral debts dating back to between 1995-2002.

Indications to this emerge after Senator Samuel Anyanwu raised a point of order, raising a poser on the legality of the funds given to governors by President Buhari.

Anyanwu, the Senate Committee Chairman of Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions said the Senate should issues surrounding the Paris Club bail out and the source of approval to the governors.

Debate on Anyawu’s call for probe of Paris Club refunds to states is expected to hold next week as the Senate President Bukola Saraki sought the approval of the Senate to consider the motion in the next legislative day.

The proposal by Saraki received an overwhelming support from Senators, an indication that the issue would come up for debate next week.

Paris Refund by President Buhari was the sum of N243.7 billion while that of bailout was N1.75 trillion.

There have been controversies over the Paris Club refunds to state, amid wider allegations that the state governments who were beneficiaries grossly mismanaged the gesture by the Federal government to give the bail out.

President Buhari during a meeting with State governors during the week had lamented the backlog of salaries owed in different states, and had expressed dismay that the governors could still sleep, when workers in their respective states had not been paid.

The governors who met Buhari had asked his government to release another tranche of the Paris Club refund to them funds more projects in their respective states.

In what seemed like a response to Buhari on the issue, the governor of Bauchi State, Mohammed Abubakar said the bailout funds they had received from the Federal Government had been their legitimate right.

The Bauchi governor who stressed that he and his colleagues were not begging for the refund, describing it as their entitlements.

He had told State House Correspondents, stressing, “Don’t forget, this is money that belongs to us. We are not begging for anything, but demanding what belongs to us and that it should be paid to us.”