The All Progressives Congress (APC) and Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, on Monday, disagreed over allegations that the governor is set to secure a N56 billion loan facility from the World Bank.
The opposition party, APC, alleged that with the foreign loans obtained by Adeleke, the total debt under his administration could rise to N81.6 billion.
Speaking at the Tinubu/Shettima campaign office, Chief Kola Olabisi, the Director of Media and Publicity, criticized Adeleke’s approach to securing loans, warning it could plunge the state into a financial crisis.
Olabisi accused Adeleke of secretly obtaining domestic loans of N10 billion and N3.92 billion in 2023, increasing the state’s debt profile to N55.3 billion.
He stated, “as if that was not enough, the state has also failed to address concerns about secretly signing a $16 million foreign loan facility, equivalent to N26.6 billion, to fund the ‘Nigeria for Women Project.’
“The first phase of the NG-CARES ended in June 2024. However, the Osun State governor has been misled to pursue the second phase. Relevant documents have already been signed, committing the state to a $35 million loan (equivalent to N56 billion) for the NG-CARES programme.”
In response, Governor Adeleke’s spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, dismissed the APC’s claims as misleading and baseless.
“Normally, we are not surprised because APC has nothing more to criticize. They cannot fault our governance, service delivery, or achievements, which have been recognized through awards both locally and internationally,” Rasheed said.
He added, “how can you call the NG-CARES programme a loan? It is a World Bank project inherited from former Governors Rauf Aregbesola and Adegboyega Oyetola.
This is not about us; it’s a federal matter. APC’s claims are riddled with illiterate postulations.”
