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Oyo Assembly approves N100bn bond request for Makinde

Oyo State House of Assembly On yesterday granted Governor Seyi Makinde approval to access a N100 billion bond for the government to finance priority projects in the state for rapid socio-economic development.

The Assembly’s decision was in line with Makinde’s request for approval to access the bond which he had communicated to the Assembly a few months ago and read at the plenary. Chairman, Assembly Committee on Finance and Appropriation, Hon. Akeem Mustapha, explained that due to economic challenges, the state needed to get the financial instrument with a very low interest rate to further actualise the infrastructural development of the state.

He said: “During our workshop, there was a consensus opinion that there was nothing wrong in borrowing or bond issuance but what is important is the judicious utilization of the bonds for the intended purpose.

They are projects that have revenue potentials and capable of generating employment opportunities. ”The process towards the actualization of the proposed N100billion bond commences November/ December, 2020 as the target issuance date. Hence, all the five identified projects will be captured in the 2021 budget of the State, he said. Responding, Speaker Debo Ogundoyin stated that upon receipt of the request, the Assembly had engaged in relevant consultations and held a seminar to highlight the benefits and challenges of bonds with an assurance on the desirability of the facility.

He added that the approval of the financial intervention would help sustain the state economy. He said: “There are needs for Government to seek and explore alternative means of financing its projects. Borrowing itself is not a bad idea but that money borrowed must be expended on capital projects that will generate revenue for easy and prompt repayment and not on recurrent expenditures.

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