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By John Ofikhenua

Worried over the parlous state of the economy due to the unhealthy nature of the nation’s debt profile, stakeholders have made strident calls for a due diligent report on the debt situation, reports John Ofikhenua
HOW much debt does Nigeria owes? This is probably one of the vexed questions that have continued to generate a lot of heated debates in many discussions but with little, if not unsatisfactory answers in response.

Expectedly, the nation's debt profile was one of the hotly debated issues at a public forum which held in Abuja recently, where members of the civil society and other multilateral agencies, comprising donors, among others raised their voice above the din, trading blames and calling attention to what they described as the unprecedented rising debt profile of the country.
Since the country's external debt profile hit a record $3.72billion in June this year, not a few people believe that the economy may probably be facing its worst nightmares in recent times. There is currently a wake up call on the citizens targeted at an audit of the nation's debt profile since no one is even certain of the total debt profile and the conditions under which the debts were negotiated. Leading this advocacy is a Non Governmental Organization, Social Action.
The group held a public forum penultimate Thursday, tagged: 'Citizens Town Hall meeting on Debt and Transparency.' One of the keynote speakers at the parley was Mrs. Ene Obi, Team Leader, Action Aid, made some provocative disclosures about Nigerian dubious debt transactions in the last few years. She also lamented that in this year's budget alone, the Federal Government had earmarked about N280billion for debt servicing, a development, she said was very disheartening, considering the fact such funds would have been expended on more people-oriented projects. Besides, Mrs. Obi disclosed how the World Bank and other prominent Nigerians negotiated some loans for seven states fake projects without the consent of the governors.
Her words: "I did tell you because I worked at one point to provide a support to Federal Ministry of Health and other related Ministries. At one point I was told that there was a particular programme (I'm not going to mention that) the World Bank came and said they were giving a grant. I was on holiday and I was called as part of the management team to bring a plan that will execute that programme. It was supposed to be about 80 million dollars and we went in. We were so happy. I was under US invitation and they brought us out and ask us to come and plan (this is money coming for Nigeria). We went into the planning until we were before the minister and a gentleman from the press asked a question: Is it a grant or a loan?
And I saw the lady from World Bank on her feet and I was like ‘what?' because I had colleagues from other agencies and they were like; 'at this point they are not sure..' I said mention it now, what is it? And she said it is a loan. But I did not know I was sitting down negotiating and planning for a loan and I walked out of that meeting. But I was told at my office to go back and at the end of the day it was not $180m again, it was $190m and before we knew it, it rose to $200m and I say who is going to pay for this loan? The loans were taken on behalf of seven states from this country and they did not yet know. The Governors don't know, the people do not know but we have taken the loan. I was also asked to come and go to the states and start paying advocacy.
I was like: ‘I don't insult people but I said: if you try me again… that was the last time I also attended that meeting." According to her, the nation has bled profusely to settle debt than developing infrastructure and education. Even as the World Bank advised Nigeria to obtain some debt, Ene Obi noted that what actually trickles down to the country is about 5 percent as consultancy and service charges are always deducted at source. She went on: "If you have the copy of this year's budget, we are paying two hundred and eighty something billion dollars on debt services. Why borrowing when budget utilization is low. We must stand for justice and poverty eradication. What we think is how to sensitize the citizens on debt because debt is a tool for domination and it is another form of slavery, and I will quote that one of the briefing papers that has been done by Social Action. They talked about the World Bank bringing a negotiation up to the table for another debt. It was giving it to the National University Commission.
"They said about 95 percent of that debt must stay back there. And 5 percent was supposed to buy school equipment and 5 percent will come to you to buy the equipment. But the 95 percent will be there for you to service the loan. Who is under-developing who?" She also recalled that when former President Olusegun Obasanjo first secured external loan in 1978 it was not necessary because the nation had oil boom that year. Obasanjo, according to the Action Aid staff, borrowed $5billion that was compounded with interest but when providence returned him as a civilian President he spent the better part of his administration negotiating debt cancellation. But there was truly no cancellation as the government paid back N15billion and still owed N31billion. This, she condemned as a means of exploitation by the World Bank through Obansanjo's transaction.
She said: "In 1978, Obassanjo borrowed five billion dollars, the debt we have owed and this fact sheet was gotten from his own letter, the letter he wrote pleading for cancellation. In that letter, he quoted as at 2000, Nigeria had paid back 15 billion dollars. It is a compound interest so; they can't protect it like you said that the Prime Minister of Nottingham, Tony Blair, he said, 'debt is an asset.' So it can continue to produce for you and you don't have to work, you situate a debt somewhere and it makes money for you. At 2000, Obassanjo who had then come back as president paid back $15 billion and still owed $31 billion.
"In 2006, they paid back 12.4 billion but before 2006, there was a lot of global movement; Jubilee South was moving. Obassanjo was leading the African countries on debt cancellation. He was moving but people were cornered in 2005 to a meeting in Norway where they were told to pay back half of this money and then we forgive you the rest of the debt. So, in half of this money, they paid the huge 12 billion and almost another 4 billion buying back the remaining stock and we were forgiven 18 billion. My brothers and sisters we were forgiven nothing because we did not pay that debt well as we were explained to. We were told they have forgiven us 18 million, the 18 billion came in with conditionality and the Nigerian government told us that we no longer owe them."
The IMF, she said, played less than noble role in the now infamous Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP).
"I can never be a friend to the IMF or World Bank. I don't pretend about it. I have the right to be emotional about it because I was a student during the anti-SAP days when we fought against the IMF conditionality. Many students, enmasse, members and citizens died on the streets of Nigeria and across", she recalled.
Lending credence to Obi's views, Ken Henshaw in his statement on behalf of Social Aid said actual debt cancellation or repudiation was never achieved, but the engagement with the creditors and outcry from the international community led the 2005 debt buy back deal. Public policy analysts also faulted the exit framework and terms insisting that the country had been short-changed, in the debt buy back deal.
At issue also was the controversial $1 billion paid as consultancy fees to certain unnamed persons who supposedly facilitated the deal, even as it was alleged that the National Assembly was not carried along as the decision on the debt relief was unilaterally taken by Obasanjo and his Finance Minister at the time, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, who herself was drafted into the cabinet from the World Bank and duly returned to the same organization at the expiration of her appointment.