Senate to Probe DBN Loan Disbursements
The Senate ad hoc committee probing alleged uneven disbursement of loans to MSMEs by the Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) in the six geo-political zones of the country has pledged to be fair in its assignment.
Sen.Sani Musa (APC-Niger), the Chairman of the committee said this at the maiden meeting of the committee in Abuja on Tuesday.
Musa said the purpose of the meeting was to map out strategies and modalities that would assist the committee to execute the onerous assignment. He said that although the investigation seemed very daunting, with patriotism, cooperation and commitment, the committee would succeed.
Musa said that the DBN was established to drive the effectiveness of MSMEs and the environment in which they operated.
He said that there were concerns over the disbursement methodology employed by the bank, saying that not all MSMEs in the country especially in the North knew about the bank.
According to him, the committee will effectively and thoroughly investigate the activities and operations of the DBN to ascertain if it conforms to its establishment act, followed due diligence in the execution of its mandate.
Musa said the committee was not out to witch hunt individuals, saying it would evaluate the criteria that qualified MSMEs to access the bank loans and at what interest rate. READ: Startups, SMEs Loans: DBN Rolls Out Contacts for Applications
Sen . Alli Ndume (APC- Borno) said the investigation was part of what was happening in the financial sector that government deliberately created to address poverty.
He said what happened in DBN was unfortunate saying that his submissions on the motion on uneven distribution of the MSMEs loan were not an allegation but a fact that has not been disputed by DBN.
Ndume said the committee was not out to witch-hunt individuals, but to find a solution and help DBN to archive its mandate. Ndume urges the committee to visit the website of DBN to study its operation since its inception.
He said facts indicated that there were some individuals who were interested in the loan, especially in the North, but could not have access to the facility. # Senate to Probe DBN Loan Disbursements
