$30b foreign loan: Ex-NBA Chairman sues Buhari, National Assembly

The fresh $29.96 billion foreign loan being sought for by
President Muhammadu Buhari has drew the ire of a human right
lawyer, who on Monday, January 6, 2020 instituted a legal action
seeking the mandate of the court to stop the National Assembly from
approving it.

Barrister Kanmi Ajibola in an action filed before the Federal
High Court, Osogbo against the respondents including the
Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) stated that they were not
acting in the interest of Nigeria, while noting that instead of
developing the available resources in the country, they were
seeking procurement of destructive loan.

The former Chairman of Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Ilesa
branch, in a 58 paragraph affidavits in support of his motion
ex-parte disclosed that he had on the 16th day of December 2019,
wrote letters to the defendants requesting for some vital
information but they failed to respond within the constitutionally
stipulated time.

Some of what he demanded for were information about the local
and foreign debt profiles and the defrayment modalities, the list
of all the FG projects being executed from the loans taken from
2015 to date, the financial cost of all executed projects from 2015
and the total sum of money recovered so far from the Late General
Sani Abacha’s loot, if spent and what it was spent on.

Ajibola told the court that he requested for the information to
enable him take a step to rescue Nigeria, saying the FG under the
leadership of the respondents has failed Nigerians.

According to him, with the new foreign loan procurement, he
discovered that the respondents wanted to perpetually entrap
Nigeria in a debt gulag and that they are planning to take the loan
without putting in place an effective all encompassing corruption
check mechanism.

He blamed President Buhari for putting Nigeria’s economy into
trouble by “placing himself above the law by freely disobeying
court orders at will” which made foreign investors to flee the
country in drove.

He further told the court that, “In 2016, the president
presented a projected proposal for foreign loan for 2016 to 2018 in
the sum of $29.96 billion to the National Assembly that is the
eight senate for approval as required by the law, but the National
Assembly rejected the proposal because it saw it as debt
colonization by the would be creditor banks, and it is capable of
‘sinking Nigeria into the dark gully of perpetual debt trap.’

“On November 28, 2019, the president has represented the
projected proposal for foreign loan in the sum of $29.96billion to
the National Assembly, that is the ninth senate, for approval as
required by the law and has now agreed to approve the proposed
loan.

“As at the time of this suit, only the senate arm of the
National Assembly has been working on the approval of loan without
the involvement of the House of Representatives”,

Ajibola who chided the President and the National Assembly for
appropriating a sum of N37billion in the 2020 budget for the
renovation of the National Assembly for a structure that was
originally erected for N7billion.

“It is an axiomatic fact that, the senate alone cannot approve a
foreign loan for the Federal Republic of Nigeria, it requires the
approval of the National Assembly, consisting of the Senate and
House of Representatives of the Federal Republic if Nigeria.

“The Abacha’s loots and money stolen by very few of the public
officers will be a relief alternative to the foreign loan sought by
the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which will inter
Nigeria to economic grave.

“The 1st to 3rd Respondents, among others, took oaths of office
to discharge their duties to the best of their abilities,
faithfully and in accordance with the constitution of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria and the law, and always in the interest of the
sovereignty, integrity, solidarity, well-being and prosperity of
the federal Republic of Nigeria.

“It is the duty of the FG and the Respondents to control the
National Economy in such manner as it will secure the maximum
welfare, freedom and happiness of every citizen on the basis of
social justice and equality of status and opportunity. The
respondents have failed in this duty.

“The effect of taking foreign loan for economic stimulus
infrastructure in a very corrupt system as we have in Nigeria is
always counterproductive, besides that, the debt servicing will
grossly suppress the effect of such borrowings, this is too harmful
to economic growth of any country in the world.

Ajibola expressed worry that both the President and that
National Assembly swore to provide good governance, but contrary to
the oaths of office of the respondents, “they are not faithful to
the said oaths”

He disclosed that he was working with some economic team, for
the purpose of assisting the FG to enable it finance its budgets
from the internally generated revenue rather than foreign and local
loans.

The former NBA Chairman asked the court for an order of mandamus
compelling the president to make available forthwith all his
demands in his letter and an order restraining the president from
taking the foreign loan of $29.96billion.

Buhari Terminated our Counter-Insurgency Operation to
Satisfy America-Military Contractor
A private military contractor, Eeben Barlow, has provided a fresh
insight as to why the war against Boko Haram insurgents still
persists almost five years after incumbent Nigeria’s president,
Muhammadu Buhari, assumed office in 2015

He said the BH terrorists are still on the prowl and launching
deadly attacks on innocent civilians and towns in the North East
because of foreign interests.

The South African military consultant spoke during an interview
with Aljazeera.

Barlow, who is the Chairman of Specialized Tasks Training
Equipment and Protection International, a foreign private Army,
said their security outfit had successfully liberated and
recaptured back several towns in Borno State from insurgents, prior
to the inauguration of Buhari as President.

This confirmed the report of PRNigeria^[1] that during the tenure
of Sambo Dasuki as the National Security Adviser (NSA) under
President Goodluck Jonathan, Nigerian troops with ‘foreign
technical assistance’ recovered many towns and villages from Boko
Haram terrorists in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States. Some of the
liberated towns then included, but are not limited to, Abadam,
Askira, Baga, Bama, Bara, Buni Yadi, Damboa, Dikwa, Gamboru-Ngala,
Goniri, Gujba, Gulag, Gulani, Gwoza, Hong, Kala Balge, Konduga,
Kukawa, Marte, Madagali, Michika, Monguno, Mubi, and Vimtim, among
other communities. The special operation also recorded a massive
invasion of Sambisa Forest where 234 abductees (women and children)
were rescued on a single day, April 30, 2015.

But regrettably, the first thing the President did upon assuming
office in 2015, according to Barlow, was to terminate their
military contract in a bid to gratify the United States of America,
who he said sponsored Buhari’s campaign.

He firmly asserted that the US actually sponsored Buhari’s
campaign, noting that the 2015 campaign manager for PMB is from
US.

“The administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan saw
the war against insurgency, and especially the contract with our
private Army has a veritable tool to regain popularity among the
masses.

“But the then incoming president, Muhammadu Buhari, was heavily
supported by the US, and one of his first mission as President
after May 2015, was to terminate their contract,” he said.

Asked why he thinks the US will intervene to abort their
operation which was yielding success, Barlow, who is the author of
“Composite Warfare: The Conduct of Successful Ground Force
Operations in Africa”, explained: “I am not saying the US is a bad
country. I also understand their foreign interest. But one would
have thought that with the threat Boko Haram posed to Nigeria’s
territorial integrity, they should be a priority for any country
desirous of helping Nigeria eliminate them.”

He maintained that foreign forces have only prolonged, rather
than end violent conflicts in most African States.

By PRNigeria^[2]