Why I Collected N30bn Loan – Wike

Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State says he decided to take loans after he assumed office in order to pay backlog of salaries owed workers and complete some abandoned projects in the state.

He pointed out that it would have been difficult for his administration to pay contractors if he had waited for the next federal allocation.

He explained that since he met an empty treasury on the assumption of office as the state governor in May, the loans helped him to kick-start the new administration with contractors mobilized back to project sites.

Stressing that every loan taken by his government was tied to specific projects with verifiable and workable repayment plan, Wike stated that the issue of unpaid pensions, overseas students’ allowances had been resolved.

The governor was reacting to criticism by the All Progressives Congress that his administration took N30bn loan in 30 days.

He noted that there wouldn’t have been any need for the loans if the immediate past APC administration in the state had been prudent in the management of the state’s resources.

Wike, who spoke through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Opunabo Inko-Tariah, said, “Rotimi Amaechi in one of his valedictory speeches admitted that the state is broke and he is bequeathing an empty treasury to Governor Wike.

He added that the APC was paranoid by the fact that he was performing creditably to the admiration and satisfaction of the people of Rivers.