Indications have emerged showing that the recent trip to China and all the celebration that government has sealed a $2bn loan deal with the Chinese government may have hit the rocks.
A credible source at the Presidency who pleaded anonymity confided in our correspondent that contrary to news making the rounds that the deal was between the Nigerian government and Chinese government, “the truth of the matter was that the Chinese government was fronting for a private company; not even a Chinese bank, for the funding without putting the company (name with held) on notice in the first instance.
The source added that “So when the company came to hear about it, it simply said it cannot do that for now and this was how we got to where we are now”.
It would be recalled that when in May government went on the trip to China, the Minister of Finance told Nigerians that the deal is as good as done.
But lately, she changed her tune, telling Nigerians that the borrowing plan is still in the pipeline.
The source disclosed further that “It was the clear understanding that the Chinese deal has failed that cropped up the new borrowing plan of $30bn by the presidency which unfortunately met its untimely death at the Senate yesterday.