Governors Demand Share Of Recovered $311m Abacha Loot
AMINA HUSSAINI, Abuja
Following the loss of projected funds resulting from the slash of federal allocations, the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) Thursday resolved to engage the federal government to ensure that they are recognised in the distribution of recovered stolen funds.
The governors at their 8th teleconferencing meeting expressed concerns about the ownership and distribution of proceeds from recovered looted funds and accounts or investments funded as the first-line charge from the federation account.
The federal government had on the receipt of the $311 million Abacha stolen funds, announced that it would be expended on the Second Niger Bridge, Lagos-Ibadan expressway and the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano expressway which are considered as federation-funded investments and which the governors have sought to be treated as shareholders
NGF Chairman and Ekiti state governor, Kayode Fayemi in a statement said the move was due to the recent deductions from state government revenues in the federation account.
“The governors noted the threat this poses on the fiscal capacity of states to respond to the demands of the COVID-19 pandemic.
‘The forum agreed to engage with the federal government to ensure that the governance arrangement of all federation-funded investments recognizes state governments as shareholders in the distribution of proceeds and decision making.”
Consequently, the governors have set up a committee that would interface with the federal government on the next medium-term National Development Plan that would help mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 crisis. while another committee will steer the activities of the NGF-NESG Economic Roundtable (NNER) – a sub-national platform of the NGF and the Nigerian Economic Summit group created to promote sub-national competitiveness through public-private collaboration.
Owing to the oil prices plunge and the impact of the Covid-19, federation funds have been affected, causing dislocation which has forced a review of the 2020 budget and framework.
With the cut in the allocation from the Federation Allocation Account Committee induced by the declining revenue, many states fear, they may be default in critical obligations such as payment of workers’ salaries amongst others
FAAC last week announced that allocation to the states will be slashed to N2.1 trillion from N3.3 trillion this year
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