SAN FRANCISCO, July 06, (THEWILL) – The three tiers of government will share the $1.7 billion (N391 billion) left in the Excess Crude Account (ECA) in a bid to pump liquidity into states to help clear backlog of salaries owed government workers and pay contractors.
The Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Ahmed Idris, who disclosed this Monday during a briefing in Abuja, also said that that the current administration met only about $1.7 billion contrary to projections by the National Economic Council (NEC) that the Excess Crude Account had $2.1 billion at the end of June.
The fall in the crude accruals of the nation was attributed to shortfalls in oil revenue, just as assurances were given that revenue leakages will be plugged.
The AGF however said that the remaining money would be shared among Federal, States and Local Government, by the Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC).
Idris told State House Correspondents shortly after briefing President Muhammadu Buhari on the state of the nation’s finances that the amount he met in the ECA “is hovering between $1.6 to $1.7 billion, and that is what we are going to distribute among all the three tiers of governments – the federal, states and local governments – based on the approved formula.”
The AGF further said: “Even today, we are going to meet. The FAAC is going to meet, and we are going to distribute as agreed and directed during the NEC meeting last week, and the position is very clear. What we met on ground is what we are going to distribute.”
He assured Nigerians that there would be prudent and transparent management of the country’s resources.
“Mr. President had a clear direction which we all have to fall in line, prudent management of resources and identification more alternative ways of generating revenue, which we are set to do and to manage the meager resources we found on ground very efficiently and effectively for the betterment of the economy,” he stated.
Written by Muhammad Bello
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