Wike taking loans for FCT without National Assembly approval – Kingibe

Senator representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Ireti Kingibe, has alleged that the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, has been obtaining loans for the nation’s capital without seeking approval from the National Assembly.

Kingibe made the allegation on Tuesday during an interview on Channels Television’s Political Paradigm, where she discussed the administration of the FCT, Abuja’s master plan and the oversight responsibilities of the National Assembly.

The senator claimed that records from the Debt Management Office (DMO) showed that loans had been obtained for the FCT between August 2023 and March 2026.

According to her, Wike had not appeared before the Senate to seek approval for the alleged borrowings.

“I am definitely saying Wike has been taking loans without the approval of the National Assembly,” Kingibe said.

She expressed concern that the Senate, which she said had a constitutional oversight responsibility over the FCT administration, had not been presented with requests for approval of the alleged loans.

“I’m sorry to say, with all due respect to the Senate, of which I’m a member, we’re supposed to oversee him,” she said.

“We’re supposed to approve, and I have brought to the attention of the leadership of the Senate that the FCT is borrowing money.”

Kingibe further claimed that she had never seen the FCT minister appear before the National Assembly to request approval for borrowing.

“I have never seen Wike come to the National Assembly, come before the Senate, to ask for approval for anything. He comes before the FCT Committee, and that’s the only time it ever sat,” she added.

The allegation comes amid ongoing debates over the financing of infrastructure projects in Abuja and the extent of the National Assembly’s oversight of the FCT administration.

Kingibe’s claims, if established, could raise questions about the legal and constitutional process through which the FCT administration obtains and services debt.

The FCT administration and the minister have not, in the statement provided, responded to the senator’s allegations.

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