In an interview, Dr. Jimoh Ibrahim, a newly elected senator and billionaire business mogul, has put forward a proposal for Nigeria to repay its debts. He suggested that the government should approach five EXIM banks and secure a loan that is five times the current debt.
During the interview, Ibrahim outlined a strategy that he believed could enable Nigeria to repay its debts within 90 days. His plan involved obtaining a loan that is five times the current debt to bridge the financial gap and then using the surplus funds to implement a repayment program over 40 years, followed by a 10-year honorarium period.
In addition to discussing the country’s debt repayment, Ibrahim also addressed Nigeria’s security challenges, particularly the long-standing Boko Haram insurgency. He described Boko Haram as a political problem and urged the President to recall Nigerian troops from the frontlines and return them to their barracks.
Ibrahim criticized the conventional military strategy employed in the fight against terrorism, attributing the alleged failure to the authorities’ approach in the Northeast region. He emphasized the need for information gathering, socialization, stakeholder engagement, and meetings instead of solely relying on troop deployments.
Looking ahead, Ibrahim advised President Bola Tinubu to prioritize political socialization and domestic engagement. He suggested that allocating a portion of the substantial funds spent on combating insurgency towards political socialization could lead to the disappearance of Boko Haram, as he believed the current allocation had been ineffective in addressing the issue.
