FIRS Boss Defends FG Borrowing, Blames Ignorance for Criticism

The Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Dr. Zacch Adedeji, has defended Federal Government’ borrowing plan and dismissed critics who oversimplify complex fiscal issues.

Speaking during a recent“Meet the Press” session in Abuja, Adedeji explained that borrowing remains a standard tool for governments seeking to finance long-term infrastructure and balance budgets.

“What is the component of a country’s budget? You have your revenue, you have your income and you have your expenditure, and you have loan.”

He stressed that borrowing is not inherently bad, noting that banks are part of the economic ecosystem and that interest from loans fuels salaries and taxes that support public finances.

“There is no country or an individual in the world that doesn’t borrow.

“When individuals or government borrow from banks, you pay interest and it is from that interest that they pay their salaries and taxes.”

Adedeji added that borrowing helps governments do projects at lower costs and spread the burden of infrastructure across generations.

“Anything that you will use that will go beyond my lifetime, why should I use my time to do it?” he asked. “When you build roads and you collect taxes in future from anybody that will be using it to pay their own fair share… when you see us borrowing, it is part of economic plan,” he said.

He said those who criticise Nigeria’s debt strategy lack understanding of fiscal planning.

“So, when those people that are just container economists talk about what we borrow, I just look at them.”