FG Turned Down Govs’ Request To Borrow N50bn From CBN, Says Ahmed

Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab
Ahmed, yesterday narrated how the federal government rejected a
request by governors to borrow N50 billion from the Central Bank of
Nigeria (CBN) to augment the revenue shortfall in March for
distribution by the Federation Account Allocation Committee
(FAAC).

The minister, who featured on a National Television Authority
(NTA) programme, monitored in Abuja, said that was why the federal
government found claims by Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki,
that it printed N60 billion to augment funds shared to states in
March as shocking.

She spoke just as governors lamented the precarious finances of
states due to the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on
revenue generation, resulting in a 40 per cent drop in their
revenues.

The governors, under the umbrella of the Nigeria Governors’
Forum (NGF), have also written Ahmed, asking her to halt the
issuance of a promissory note to one Dr Ted Edwards being payment
for legal services rendered to the Association of Local Governments
of Nigeria (ALGON) in connection with the Paris Club refund.

The minister said rather than grant the governors’ request, the
federal government told them to manage the available funds.

She said: “It is a difficult time. I can explain to you how
difficult it is not just for the federal government, but also for
the states. We see increasing reduction in our FAAC revenue.

“In the month of March, we had a shortfall of FAAC that is
almost about N50 billion and we did not have enough accrued in any
of those accounts. The states, to be honest, wanted us to borrow
from the central bank, but we resisted. We just told everybody to
go back to live within what they had.

“So, it was very surprising for us when we heard a sitting
governor saying that CBN has printed money for FAAC. That was very
unfortunate because it is not true.”

The minister said whenever there was reduction in federal
allocation, the federal government resorted to taking from some
reserve accounts, adding that in the case of March allocation which
fell by N50 billion, all the state governments were asked to manage
their resources.

Responding to a question on how the economy was faring, she said
the economy was stabilising from the recession that happened in the
third quarter of 2020.

Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab
Ahmed, yesterday narrated how the federal government rejected a
request by governors to borrow N50 billion from the Central Bank of
Nigeria (CBN) to augment the revenue shortfall in March for
distribution by the Federation Account Allocation Committee
(FAAC).

The minister, who featured on a National Television Authority
(NTA) programme, monitored in Abuja, said that was why the federal
government found claims by Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki,
that it printed N60 billion to augment funds shared to states in
March as shocking.

She spoke just as governors lamented the precarious finances of
states due to the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on
revenue generation, resulting in a 40 per cent drop in their
revenues.

The governors, under the umbrella of the Nigeria Governors’
Forum (NGF), have also written Ahmed, asking her to halt the
issuance of a promissory note to one Dr Ted Edwards being payment
for legal services rendered to the Association of Local Governments
of Nigeria (ALGON) in connection with the Paris Club refund.

The minister said rather than grant the governors’ request, the
federal government told them to manage the available funds.

She said: “It is a difficult time. I can explain to you how
difficult it is not just for the federal government, but also for
the states. We see increasing reduction in our FAAC revenue.

“In the month of March, we had a shortfall of FAAC that is
almost about N50 billion and we did not have enough accrued in any
of those accounts. The states, to be honest, wanted us to borrow
from the central bank, but we resisted. We just told everybody to
go back to live within what they had.

“So, it was very surprising for us when we heard a sitting
governor saying that CBN has printed money for FAAC. That was very
unfortunate because it is not true.”

The minister said whenever there was reduction in federal
allocation, the federal government resorted to taking from some
reserve accounts, adding that in the case of March allocation which
fell by N50 billion, all the state governments were asked to manage
their resources.

Responding to a question on how the economy was faring, she said
the economy was stabilising from the recession that happened in the
third quarter of 2020.