Taraba Debt: Bwacha Media Team Demands Full Disclosure of State’s Borrowings, Obligations

The Bwacha Media Team has challenged the Taraba State Government to provide a comprehensive breakdown of the state’s borrowing, disbursements, repayments and outstanding financial obligations, insisting that the government’s recent explanation of its debt profile has failed to address key questions.

In a statement issued on Monday, August 10, the group said the government’s response focused largely on disputing figures it described as inaccurate, rather than providing the detailed financial information required for citizens to independently assess the state’s fiscal position.

The group stressed that it was not claiming that undrawn facilities should automatically be classified as outstanding debt, nor was it insisting that approved but undisbursed financing should be added to the Debt Management Office (DMO) debt stock.

According to the statement, the central issue is how much Taraba State has actually borrowed, received, spent, repaid and still owes.

DMO Figures

The Bwacha Media Team questioned the government’s reliance on a September 2025 DMO figure of ₦89.74 billion, arguing that a subsequent DMO publication placed Taraba’s domestic debt at ₦85.51 billion as of December 31, 2025.

The group said the government should therefore explain why an older figure was presented as its benchmark in an August 2026 fiscal discussion when a more recent official figure was available.

It described the issue as part of a wider demand for greater transparency in the management of the state’s finances.

₦206.78bn Facility Under Scrutiny

The group also demanded clarification on the approximately ₦206.78 billion financing facility approved by the Taraba State House of Assembly in 2023.

The facility, reportedly involving Zenith Bank, UBA, Keystone Bank and Fidelity Bank, was intended to support sectors including education, infrastructure, agriculture, security and healthcare.

While acknowledging that an approved facility is not necessarily equivalent to an outstanding debt, the Bwacha Media Team demanded that the government disclose the actual amount drawn from each financial institution.

It also requested details of repayments, restructuring arrangements, outstanding balances and the specific projects financed with the funds.

The group said the government’s explanation would be more convincing if accompanied by documentary evidence showing the movement and utilisation of the funds.

Calls for Comprehensive Fiscal Reconciliation

The statement challenged the Commissioner for Finance to publish a reconciliation of all major borrowing facilities obtained by the state since 2023.

The requested information includes the amount approved, amount actually drawn, amount repaid, outstanding balance, purpose of each facility and the financial institutions involved.

The group specifically referenced the reported ₦206.78 billion commercial bank facility, the proposed ₦350 billion capital market programme and other financing arrangements, including an alleged $268 million EBID-related facility.

Beyond DMO Debt Stock

The Bwacha Media Team further argued that the DMO debt stock, while important, does not necessarily provide a complete picture of all the state’s financial commitments.

It called for disclosure of contractor arrears, guarantees, contingent liabilities, judgment debts, public-private partnership obligations, committed but undisbursed facilities, debt-service obligations and refinancing commitments.

According to the group, financial obligations that do not appear directly in the headline DMO debt-stock figure may still have implications for the state’s future finances.

Dispute Over DMO Attribution

The group also questioned the Taraba State Government’s reported attribution of the description of a ₦1.2 trillion debt claim as “misleading, inaccurate, and politically motivated” to the Debt Management Office.

The Bwacha Media Team called on the government to publish the official DMO statement containing the alleged description.

It argued that publicly available reports had attributed the comments to chartered accountant and financial analyst Olayinka Gabriel Motunrayo rather than to the DMO.

The group said the government should either provide evidence of the DMO’s statement or clarify the attribution.

‘Being One of the Least Indebted States Is Not Enough’

The media team also rejected the argument that Taraba’s position among states with relatively lower domestic debt should settle the issue.

It maintained that the important questions should concern the purpose of the borrowing, the state’s ability to repay, the benefits derived from the funds and the future financial burden on residents.

“Ranking is not accountability,” the group stated.

Demand for Transparency

The Bwacha Media Team concluded by calling on the Taraba State Government to publish bank-by-bank disbursement schedules, repayment records, outstanding balances, debt-service obligations, contingent liabilities, contractor arrears, guarantees and details of projects financed through borrowed funds.

The group said its demand was not for undrawn loans to be counted as debt but for the government to provide verifiable information about the state’s actual financial exposure.

It urged the government to provide the documents so that residents could independently assess its financial stewardship.