A former Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Razak Atunwa has berated the State House of Assembly for approving a N35 billion loan request by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, describing the approval process as “illegal”.
Atunwa, who was also the Peoples Democratic Party gubernatorial candidate in the 2019 general election, said the State Assembly acted on an “illegal request” and passed an “illegal resolution”, adding that the House did not hold a Public Hearing on the request.
He added that the request did not provide full details of projects the loan would be used for.
He asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to act swiftly on it. He also called on the Debt Management Office (DMO) to “equally put on notice not to lend itself to such a flawed and illegal process”.
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THE PROPOSED N35bn ILLEGALITY IN KWARA
It is exceedingly alarming that the Governor of Kwara State in concert with his collaborators in the Kwara State House of Assembly have embarked on a glaringly illegal scheme to borrow N35bn without due authority or due process.
The first time the Kwara public became aware of this proposed borrowing of humongous proportions was when the State House of Assembly passed a resolution approving the Governor’s request. This is most worrying indeed.
Let me state it clearly, the request by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq is illegal. The approval by the Kwara State House of Assembly is illegal. It therefore amounts to illegality upon illegality.
I approach this issue from experience both as a former member of the Kwara State Executive Council and Speaker Kwara State House of Assembly (KWHA). The Debt Management Office (DMO) which is ultimately charged with superintending such borrowing has always made clear the process and requirements.
By combined reference to the 1999 Constitution (as amended), Section 44 Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007, and Sections 223 and 224 of the Investment and Securities Act 2007, it is a requirement that the request must first have the ”Approval of the State Executive Council (State Exco) duly signed by the Secretary to the State Government”
Thereafter, the House of Assembly is required to pass a Resolution approving the request. To be very clear, the Resolution will grant powers of executing the projects to the State Exco. DMO states that “the State Executive Council (EXCO) be and is hereby authorised to do all such other things as may be required to ensure the successful execution and completion of the Proposal”.
I vividly recall as a member of the State Executive Council in the Bukola Saraki Administration when we proposed to issue N17bn bond, the issue was discussed over a series of cabinet meetings. Details of all the projects were fully scrutinised as all the relevant commissioners and ministries were asked to justify the reasons for the projects and their estimates.
After the scrutiny and approval by the cabinet, the request was forwarded to the House of Assembly. There was even so much more scrutiny by KWHA that some members of the cabinet took offence. But the House prevailed and did its job. A full Public Hearing was held with very many members of the public in attendance. If my memory serves me correctly, even Akogun Oyedepo attended to register opposition to it. Such was the level of adherence to due process then.
That loan was fully repaid by 2014. In fact, I recall as Speaker, that even when Governor AbdulFatah Ahmed wanted to borrow far smaller amounts from the local banks and required House Resolution, he would willingly subject the request to scrutiny by the House.
Unfortunately, such scrutiny is now non-existent. The speed and alacrity with which the request was honoured is further testament to the fact that the House is either gloriously unaware of the legal requirements for such a loan or have permitted themselves to become a willing tool in the hands of the Governor to fulfil his whims and caprices.
Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq dissolved his cabinet on 31 December 2020. He has not reconstituted a State Executive Council since then. So, on what basis did he send the request to the House? The DMO does not recognise requests for a loan by a “Sole Administrator”. The KWHA should have sent the request back.
Instead, the KWHA acted on an illegal request and passed an illegal Resolution. To make matters even compellingly worse, the House did not hold a Public Hearing, as it should, before approving such a monumental amount. Perhaps, this is not surprising because the request did not provide full details of projects
The EFCC should be on notice about this illegality. Should the state government act on this flawed process to illegally obtain such a loan, the EFCC should swiftly move in to probe it.
The DMO is equally put on notice not to lend itself to such a flawed and illegal process. I urge them to keep a keen eye on this matter and ensure that the Governor does not secretly obtain a loan of such magnitude under false pretences.
Rt. Hon. Razak Atunwa,
PDP Gubernatorial Candidate, Kwara State (2019)