Why Anambra Pulled Out from World Bank loan arrangement — Soludo

 

Maduako Igbokwe I Sunday, March 09, 2025

 

AWKA, Anambra – The Governor of Anambra State, Prof. Charles Soludo, has stated that he pulled the state out of the World Bank loan arrangement because it was a bad deal for the people of the State.

Soludo made this revelation over the weekend when the leadership of the late Ifeanyi Ubah political groups, along with some Nollywood actors and actresses, toured the ongoing construction of the Government House in Awka North Local Government Area.

Addressing the groups, the Governor said that Anambra State is the only state to have pulled out from the existing World Bank loan arrangement in Nigeria.

According to him, the terms and conditions of the World Bank loans were not favorable for the people of Anambra, so he decided to pull out.

“When I came in as governor and looked at the terms and conditions of those loans, I said it was not favorable to our people. This is a bad deal for my people. However, one could say, ‘Let me collect the loans; after all, it is the next generation that will pay.’ I don’t have that kind of conscience. I felt the terms were a bad deal for Ndi Anambra, and I told them we don’t need it. Late last year, they shared 438 million dollars among 35 states in Nigeria, but Anambra State was the only state that did not collect. We don’t need to continue to mortgage the state with such loans,” he said.

Soludo emphasized that he needs money to fund government projects, but not the kind that mortgages the future of the state and its unborn children.

He also pointed out that Anambra State is the only state in Nigeria where the governor’s lodge is located outside the capital, and the government house has been in a makeshift building provided by a construction company for 34 years.

According to him, the present government house is owned by the company that constructed the Enugu-Onitsha expressway.

Soludo further stated that for 34 years, Anambra had no government house and no governor’s lodge. However, today, the state is building one of the best government houses, with 34 buildings sitting on 23 heactres of land, noting that those building can last for 250 years without touching them.

He also disclosed that he has not borrowed any money to fund the construction of the ongoing government house and other projects in the state. He noted that he vowed that any money handed to him on behalf of the state must be judiciously utilized for the good of the people of Anambra State.