I pay ₦6.7bn debt monthly, have borrowed nothing since 2023 — Kaduna gov

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Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani says his administration has not taken any new loans since he assumed office, despite paying about ₦6.7bn monthly to service debts inherited from previous governments.

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Sani stated this on Thursday during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today, while responding to questions about his administration’s spending and the state’s rising internally generated revenue.

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“Since I became governor, I’ve not borrowed one kobo,” the governor said.

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Sani, who assumed office in May 2023, said his administration had instead focused on prudent management of available resources while continuing to meet the state’s inherited debt obligations.

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According to the governor, Kaduna currently spends about ₦6.7bn every month servicing loans incurred by previous administrations.

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“It’s about being prudent. It’s about selecting or being very careful in where you invest the money,” he said.

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The governor said the decision not to borrow was driven by his administration’s approach to prioritising expenditure and directing available resources towards areas with the greatest impact on residents.

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Sani also defended his administration’s record, citing interventions in agriculture, education, infrastructure, skills development and security.

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Kaduna identifies 550,000 out-of-school children

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On education, Sani said his administration had identified about 550,000 out-of-school children across Kaduna State through a household-mapping exercise.

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He said more than 300,000 of the children have since been returned to classrooms, while efforts were continuing to enrol the remaining children.

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According to the governor, the mapping exercise was designed to provide reliable data on the number and location of out-of-school children and enable the government to target its interventions more effectively.

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Sani said the initiative was part of his administration’s broader effort to address education gaps in the state.

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The governor also listed agriculture, infrastructure, skills acquisition and security among areas where he said his administration had recorded progress.

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He maintained that the combination of increased revenue and tighter financial management had enabled Kaduna to fund projects without resorting to additional borrowing.

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Sani’s claim means Kaduna has continued to service loans incurred before his administration while, according to him, refraining from taking on new borrowing since he assumed office in May 2023.

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While he did not indicate which of the rulers before him incurred the debt, PUNCH Online reports that Sani succeeded Nasir El-Rufai, who governed Kaduna from 2015 to 2023.

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Before El-Rufai, Mukhtar Ramalan Yero served from 2012 to 2015, while Patrick Yakowa was governor from 2010 until his death in December 2012.

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