FG withdraws $1.6bn in three weeks, shrinks ECA to $631m

Between November 25 and December 19, the amount in the Excess
Crude Account declined by about $1.68bn, statistics obtained from
the Federation Account Allocation Committee have revealed.

As of November 25 when the FAAC committee meeting was held to
allocate revenue for that month, the balance in the ECA was put at
$2.319bn.

However, at the resumed meeting on Wednesday at the headquarters
of the ministry of finance, the balance, according to the Permanent
Secretary in ministry, Mahmoud Dutse, had dropped to $631m.

Dutse, who briefed journalists shortly after the meeting, said
withdrawals were made by the Federal Government from the ECA to
settle the last tranche of the Paris Club Refund.

Dutse did not provide the amount withdrawn but the analysis by
our correspondent showed that about $1.68bn might have been
withdrawn during the three weeks period.

He said, “The balance in the ECA is $631m. The final payment for
the Paris Club Refund to states was made and the figure was
deducted and that’s what accounts for the difference.”

When reminded that it was wrong for such deductions to be made
for such purpose, he replied that the committee got an approval
from President Muhammadu Buhari and the Federal Executive Council
before making the withdrawal.

He said, “A decision was taken to make this refund and part of
that decision is that the refund should be funded from the ECA.
Federal Executive Council, the President approved the money.”

The Accountant-General of the Federation, Alhaji Ahmed Idris,
when accosted on his way out of the meeting to clarify the
withdrawal, said that due process was followed before the
withdrawal was made.

“You can go and find out from the National Assembly if we got
approval for it but due process was followed before the fund was
released.”

Meanwhile, the committee allocated a total amount of N812.76bn
to the three tiers of government.

A breakdown of the amount showed that the Federal Government got
N326.75bn; the 36 states are to share N203.2bn while the 774 Local
Government Councils are to share the sum of N153.52bn.

In addition, the sum of N57.07bn was allocated to the oil
producing states based on the 13 per cent derivation principle.

The gross statutory revenue for the month of November, Dutse
said, was put at N649.62bn.

This is N32.53bn lower than the N682.16bn received in the
previous month of October.

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