2020 Budget: President Buhari Seeks Senate’s Approval For N850bn Loan

President Muhammadu Buhari has appeal to the Nigerian  Senate to give approval to a fresh loan of eight hundred and fifty billion naira  N850bn to fund the 2020 capital budget.

Naija news this was contained in a Presidential memo read by the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan on the floor of the Senate.

Lawan read the letter immediately after the upper chamber emerged from about 3-hour closed session.

According to the letter, President Buhari seeks to raise the loan from the domestic capital market to ensure adequate funds to finance projects in the budget.

After the letter was read, the lawmakers gave accelerated approval to the President’s request to raise the loan.

They also asked the Senate Committees on Finance and Appropriation to liaise with the Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, to get more details on the loan request.

President Buhari’s request was granted following the senators’ resumption from a recess which lasted about five weeks.

The lawmakers had gone on break since March as part of measures to curb the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) in the country.

At the resumed plenary, the Senate President welcomed his colleagues and gave the reason for the resumption of plenary amid the rising cases of COVID-19 in Nigeria.

He explained that the decision was to help sustain solutions to the health crisis and ensure the crisis does not create more problems for the government and its people.