The Managing Director of the Bank of Industry, (BOI), Olukayode Pitan, has come under fire in the Senate on Wednesday for not knowing the identities of the beneficiaries of the loans given out by the bank across the country.
The BOI boss while making submissions before the Senate Committee on Industry for the 2022 budget defence said, the loans were secured through bank guarantees provided by commercial banks on behalf of the beneficiaries.
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Senators Adamu Bulkachuwa, (APC Bauchi North), Christopher Ekpenyong (PDP Akwa Ibom North-West) and Danjuma La’ah, ( PDP Kaduna South) said, they are unaware of the activities of the Bank of Industry in their Senatorial Districts.
Senator Ekpenyong also lamented that most of his Senatorial District members are unable to access loans from the Bank of Industry, adding that the Union Bank and United Bank of Africa (UBA) do not give bank guarantees to his people.
Pitan clarified that he was being misunderstood, affirming that the agency knows where the loans go to but do not determine the beneficiaries.
The committee chaired by Senator Tokunbo Abiru, ( APC Lagos East), also expressed dissatisfaction with the inadequate allocation of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, which are the real drivers of the economy in the 2021 budget.
The Bank of Industry in the 2021 budget released N165 billion to large enterprises in the country, while Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises benefited N40 billion as of September 2021.
But the Managing Director of the BOI while defending the insufficient allocation to the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, said most people on that level are not ready to repay the loan, believing that the money is government money and do not require to pay back.
(Editor: Ifeanyi Mark)
