Probe of Emefiele’s N30tn Ways and Means loan not abandoned – Senate

Senator Isah Jibrin, Chairman of the Senate panel investigating the N30tn Ways and Means loans secured from the Godwin Emefiele-led Central Bank of Nigeria by the Federal Government, has confirmed that the probe is ongoing and has not been abandoned.

Senator Jibrin clarified to our correspondent that reports of an abandoned probe are entirely false.

On Tuesday, February 20, the Senate resolved to investigate the N30tn loan, citing that the alleged reckless spending of the overdraft from the CBN largely contributed to the current food and security crises in the country.

After its inauguration, the panel identified 13 infractions in the process of obtaining the loan from the CBN. Responding to a media report, Senator Jibrin emphasised that the figures under investigation are not in dispute, as the Ways and Means advances given to former President Muhammadu Buhari by Emefiele are already public knowledge.

The panel chair stated, “We received some preliminary documents and decided to delve deeper after our interface with the CBN governor, Olayemi Cardoso, the Minister of Finance, some CBN directors, and others. Following leads from our interface, we realized the need for a detailed, step-by-step breakdown of how the money was spent.

“We have written to the Accountant-General requesting additional documents on the Ways and Means loan, and we believe the delay is due to efforts to compile accurate information to avoid misleading us and Nigerians,” he added.

Senator Jibrin reiterated, “We have not gone into limbo; we only needed additional documents from the Accountant-General’s office to continue the interface. The amount under probe is N30tn. I don’t know why people are spreading falsehood to achieve a selfish purpose.”

He added that although the committee has elapsed the time frame given to it, but the delay was necessary to get the job done.

He said, ” The committee was given a time frame that has elapsed but we cannot because of that submit a job done haphazardly. We have written reminders to the Accountant General Office and once we have the document, we move to the next phase of the probe.”

The PUNCH reports that during the Ninth Assembly, President Buhari, in a letter dated December 20, 2022, requested the restructuring of the accumulated N22.7 trillion Ways and Means loans, alongside an additional N1 trillion primarily for funding the N819.5 billion 2022 supplementary budget, totaling N23.7 trillion.

In his request, President Buhari explained, “The Ways and Means are advances from the Central Bank of Nigeria to the federal government for emergency funding due to delayed fiscal deficits. As of December 19, 2022, the balance of Ways and Means was N22.7 trillion.

“I have approved the securitization of these balances under the following terms: Amount, N23.7 trillion; Tenure, 40 years; Moratorium on principal repayment, three years; Interest rate, 9 per cent. Your concurrence and approval are sought to allow for the implementation of the same.”

After the Ahmad-Lawan-led Ninth Senate passed the N23.7 trillion, the Tenth Senate, on December 30, 2023, also approved the securitization of the outstanding debit balance of N7.3 trillion of the Ways and Means Advance in the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federal Government.