Mounting Debts: More suffering as CBN Says Nigeria Will Toll Roads to Repay Loans
- The Nigerian government is poised to reintroduce toll gates on the roads to bolster revenue to service its debts
- Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele said the decision is best as the country seeks to offset national debts used in constructing the roads
- He said the road users will have to bear the brunt of constructing the roads as most of the funds were borrowed
Nigeria is scrounging to service debilitating national debts which experts say has tripled in the last 7 years since Buhari became Nigeria’s president.
The Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Godwin Emefiele said the Nigerian government will toll some roads in the country built with borrowed money to repay the loans.
The Punch newspaper said the CBN helmsman was answering questions after the two-day retreat of the Bankers’ Committee in Lagos.
Source: Depositphotos
Burden on road users
Emefiele said the introduction of the tolls may be a profitable way to increase revenue for governments and help the CBN to repay loans. Nigerians who use the roads will pay to utilize them.
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Experts feel this may impact the cost of transportation as operators will hike prices to cushion the costs.
The CBN governor said most countries around the world also tax their road users and Nigeria will not be an exception.
He said:
“Most of those roads will be tolled and we know that in many other countries in the world, roads are tolled because those projects are commercially viable.”
Emefiele noted the government can be reimbursed with tolls so that maintenance can be done regularly for the people to enjoy good roads.
What Emefiele is saying
“They can be refunded with tolls so that maintenance can be done regularly, and people will pay for it and enjoy good roads, and enjoy good facilities because that is the only way we can fund the infrastructure of this country, which is the large amount of money that is needed.”
Emefiele said idle funds in the financial sector be channelled designed the way the newly established Infrastructure Company Limited is designed so as to give local investors the confidence to invest in the country and projects.
He stated that the banking industry aimed to assist the government and business sector in raising funds without putting the Federal Government’s balance sheet at risk. He explained that the majority of the cash would be in naira since banks and pension fund administrators have enormous pools of funds and that the majority of the funds can be generated domestically before the country considers seeking international financing.
The introducing tolls on the roads will accelerate transportation costs in a country where, according to the 2020 World Poverty Clock report, 105 million people live in extreme poverty.
Transport hikes inevitable
Most Nigerians commute via public transportations and it is expected that the transport vehicle owners will hike fares if they have to pay tolls for the roads they use, in addition to various levies and taxes they pay daily to the government and transport unions.
Nigerians react
Meanwhile, Legit.ng had reported that many Nigerians believe that the decision is ill-timed as the roads are mostly in bad shape, in addition to the regular extortion of commercial and private drivers by security officers and the fees collected by the FRSC and VIO.
Persons with similar views said the masses are the ones to bear the brunt since, according to them, those in government do not get to pay the fees, adding that the money realised will not be channelled into anything useful.
Persons with similar views said the masses are the ones to bear the brunt since, according to them, those in government do not get to pay the fees, adding that the money realised will not be channelled into anything useful.
Source: Legit.ng
