Assembly Approves Wike’s N10bn Loan Request

The Rivers State House of Assembly on Thursday approved a loan of N10 billion requested by the State Governor, Nyesom Wike.
The state governor had sent a letter to the House of Assembly asking that he should be granted approval to secure the loan that would be used to fund some major projects in the state. 28 lawmakers voted in favour of the approval.Speaker of the House, Mr. Ikuinyi Ibani, in his remark, explained that it would be difficult for any government to survive without funds to operate.
Ibani, who pointed that the House would not be involved in frivolous approvals, added that the state legislature would endorse transparent and sincere requests that would benefit the people of the state.
Explaining that the immediate past administration left an empty treasury, the Speaker disclosed that the loan would be taken from Zenith Bank and repaid through Valued Added Tax.
He said, “He (Wike) cannot do that without cash back. No government can run without a financial base. We must provide succour for our people, so that they can begin to see changes between yesterday and today.
“This Assembly will not engage in frivolous approval and resolutions. As an Assembly, we have the responsibility to know what the funds sought are meant for.”
Meanwhile, the State House of Assembly has committed the High Court Amendment Law 2015 to an ad hoc committee to conduct a public hearing on the matter.