THERE IS NO JUSTIFICATION FOR THE OYO STATE NEW CONTROVERSIAL ₦300 BILLION LOAN!
SPN opposes the procurement of the new loan and urges Hon. Ibraheem Shittu to lead a genuine opposition to the loan
The Oyo State Chapter of the Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN) strongly condemns the recent approval of a controversial ₦300 billion loan by the Oyo State House of Assembly for the Seyi Makinde–led government. Experience has shown that the fundamental motive behind such loans is never about addressing the real needs of the working but poor people in the state, but rather to further entrench the self-serving interests of a few members of the privileged class.
We note the tireless efforts of the State Assembly in trying to justify the legality of the sitting that approved the loan and its attempts to discredit Hon. Ibraheem Shittu, the lawmaker representing Saki West constituency, who has publicly distanced himself from the process. However, these arguments are baseless and completely missing the point. The real issue is not whether due legislative procedures were followed, but whether the loan itself was necessary in the first place, and more importantly, whether it was secured in the interest of the masses of Oyo State.
To the best of our knowledge, this new loan is not needed and will only worsen the state’s debt burden without any prospect of meaningful improvements in the lives of working people. Between April and June 2025 alone, the state borrowed ₦93.4 billion and spent ₦18.6 billion servicing debts, yet there is no corresponding evidence of infrastructural development or social upliftment. Previous loans under the Makinde administration have produced little to no tangible results. For instance, the ₦7.5 billion agricultural loan has failed to boost food production. Instead of easing the rising cost of food, Oyo State continues to rely heavily on food supply from northern Nigeria.
The argument for another massive loan becomes even weaker in the face of rising revenues. The Oyo State government itself has admitted that federal allocations have increased by about 75 percent following the removal of petrol subsidies by the Tinubu administration. In addition, internally generated revenue has grown tremendously. With this significant expansion of fiscal resources, resorting to fresh loans is not only unnecessary but also fiscally irresponsible.
Government officials have tried to defend the borrowing by claiming that the ₦300 billion will be divided into two parts: ₦149 billion for refinancing existing debt and ₦151 billion for infrastructure financing and payments to contractors. However, without transparency and accountability, such explanations do little to convince the public that this is not simply another cycle of borrowing to satisfy the greed of pro-capitalist politicians and their business allies who often masquerade as contractors.
The SPN also welcomes Hon. Ibraheem Shittu’s decision to publicly distance himself from the loan approval. However, a mere verbal disassociation from an anti-people policy does nothing to shield the masses from its consequences. If Hon. Shittu’s opposition is truly based on the defense of public interest, he must go beyond symbolic gestures and take up the responsibility of leadership. We therefore urge him to begin mobilising his constituency and the working masses in Oyo State to mount serious, organized resistance against the loan. Anything short of these risks exposing his opposition as a hollow gesture. Furthermore, any genuine opposition to this new loan must be linked to a demand for full accountability over all previous loans procured by the Makinde–led government, which have so far had no tangible benefits for the working people of Oyo State.
The SPN believes that there are far more credible and people-oriented alternatives to manage the state finance without plunging deeper into debt. These alternatives include cutting the outrageous salaries and allowances of political office holders to align with those of civil servants, scrapping wasteful and unconstitutional outfits such as the Office of the First Lady, and ending the dubious contract system through which state resources are siphoned under the guise of infrastructural development.
Instead, the state should directly empower the Ministry of Works with the machinery and manpower to carry out public projects under the control and supervision of elected representatives of working people. In the same vein, the questionable practice of allocating huge security votes to the governor must be abolished, with such funds redirected into the state’s collective pool and deployed transparently in ways that serve the general interest.
Oyo State does not need more loans but rather a radical change in governance priorities. We therefore demand accountability for past borrowings through democratically constituted public probe, transparency in the management of the state’s growing revenues, and a decisive break from policies that favor a privileged few at the expense of the masses. The SPN calls for the building of mass working peoples’ party on a socialist program, not only in Oyo state but also nationally, in order to wrest political power and form a government that democratically manage the resources of the society for the benefit of the vast majority.
Such a government will genuinely invest in education, healthcare, agriculture, public infrastructure and other basic needs, not the current pro-capitalist administration of Seyi Makinde, which mortgages the future of the state through reckless borrowing. We hereby call on workers, youth, and students to join and support the SPN and its struggle for the enthronement of a socialist order in Oyo State and Nigeria as a whole. This is an important step towards a world socialist future.
Ayodeji Adigun
SPN Oyo State Secretary
E-mail: [email protected]