Moghalu says Nigeria needs an economically-competent government. 2023 presidential aspirant, Kingsley Moghalu, has once again condemned the borrowing strategy of President Muhammadu Buhari-led’s administration.
The Debt Management Office (DMO) announced earlier this month that Nigeria’s total public debt rose to N38.005 trillion (US$92.626 billion) in September 2021.
The debt increased by N2.540 trillion between July and September, largely due to the US$4 billion Eurobonds issued by the government in September.
Moghalu called the streak of borrowing ‘irresponsible’ in a series of tweets o
The economist said Nigeria’s borrowing is unsustainable and is hurting citizens whom the government should be helping.
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He posted, “What matters for a developing country is the ability to pay relative to revenues and the cost of debt servicing relative to investment in development
“At 90 kobo of every one Naira we earn going to debt repayments, there is nothing left to invest in education and healthcare (human capital), the building blocks of any society.”
The Buhari government has made repeated claims that its borrowing will yield dividends in the future as most of the loans go into building infrastructure.
But Moghalu said on Tuesday that it’s the wrong approach especially if the infrastructure being built can’t yield revenues to repay the loans.
“Nigeria needs economic salvation!” he said.
Nigeria’s debt portfolio has skyrocketed under President Buhari, rising from N12.12 trillion in June 2015, a month after he assumed office.
He told Nigerians in October to stop worrying about the debt pile which he said is within sustainable limits, but he has also been campaigning at global events for debt relief and cancellation.
