The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) came hard on the Federal Government of Nigeria for seeking the sum of $6.9 billion from international lenders to fight the coronavirus pandemic, wondering what happened to billions of naira donated to by Nigerians.
The opposition party said the development was nothing short of deception by the Buhari led administration, in the guise of tackling the pandemic.
Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed had in a meeting with federal lawmakers on Monday in Abuja, hinted on plans to set up an N500 billion intervention fund to battle the global pandemic.
The Minister had in that meeting disclosed that government would seek foreign loans from the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, IMF and others to cushion the COVID-19 impact on the economy.
Reacting, Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Diran Odeyemi tasked government to come clean on what has happened to the billions of naira already donated by well-meaning Nigerians as palliative to a vulnerable lot of the society.
He said: “It is clear that this government is now using the Coronavirus pandemic as an avenue to make more money for itself. “Why do we have to seek foreign loan when the COVID-19 is a global phenomenon? Have they justified how the billions of naira raised so far have been spent?
“Across the country, people are crying of the hunger and hardship occasioned by the lockdown. Food items are not provided and the money they claimed to be sharing to the poorest of the poor is enmeshed with controversy.
“With the way things are going, it may be difficult for this government to implement any development project again. It appears they are going to tell us that they spend the remaining three years fighting the virus.”
