Chinasa replies Reps Deputy Speaker on $263.8 million credit facility * Tells him to focus on legislative duties, stop disparaging Gov Otti

Chinasa replies Reps Deputy Speaker on $263.8 million credit facility

* Tells him to focus on legislative duties, stop disparaging Gov Otti

By Steve Oko

Abia State Liaison Officer at the National Assembly, Chief Iheanyi Chinasa, has slammed the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu,  “for raising false alarm” over a $263.8 million loan facility obtained by Abia State Government.

The loan facility was secured for the Abia State Integrated Infrastructural Development Project, ABSIID, a project aimed at developing the sate infrastructure.

Reacting to the Deputy Speaker’s recent comments on the matter, Chief Chinasa said the credit facility was sourced from a consortium of three banks namely: Islamic Development Bank ($125 million); African Development Bank, AfDB ($100 million); the Canada–Africa Development Bank ($15 million); while Abia State Government contributed $23.80 million as counterpart funding.

The NASS Liaison Officer who is Kalu’s  kinsman, accused the Deputy Speaker of raising a false alarm, explaining that the said loan facility had not been withdrawn by the state.

He described the action as a belated poor script aimed at demarketing the Otti-led administration.

He said:”These funds are still with the banks. The state has not drawn a single kobo from the funds as I speak. This information is also within the public domain for all to access and verify.”

Chief Chinasa slammed the Deputy Speaker “for peddling misinformation with intent to discredit Otti’s administration.”

The Liaison Officer also accused the Deputy Speaker of disparaging the Governor for selfish political reasons.

“My question is: Why does the Deputy Speaker like to misinform the public? Is this a desperation to generate controversy and further present himself as being prosecuted for the President’s sake?

“The Deputy Speaker asking for results from a loan that is yet to be disbursed is shocking. Looking for opportunity to blackmail Abia State Government at every forum is very unbecoming of the exalted office of the Deputy Speaker.”

Chief Chinasa advised the Deputy Speaker to “focus on his representation of the people of Bende federal constituency and stop his unprovoked attacks against Otti.”

He asked him to wait for 2027 and contest for the governorship race “if he thinks he has the popularity and capacity to compete with Gov. Otti.”

Chinasa said Gov. Otti had “performed so well with the resources available to him, and deserves commendation and not attacks or distractions”.

The brewing crisis between Otti and Kalu’s camp worsened recently when Kalu remarked that the developments in the state were not commensurate with the funds accruing to the state.

He also argued that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Should be praised for giving the Governor more money to work with following the removal of fuel subsidy.

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