The presidency on Friday said that nine oil-producing states have received 13 per cent derivation totalling N625.43 billion, subsidy and SURE-P refunds from the Federation Account in the last two years.
In a statement, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, listed the states to have received the refunds dating from 1999 to 2021 including Abia, Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Imo, Ondo and Rivers.
Abia State received N1.1billion, Akwa-Ibom – N15bn; Bayelsa – N1.6 billion; Cross River – 432 million; Delta – N14.8 billion; Edo – N2.2 billion; Imo – N2.9billion; Ondo – N3.7billion and Rivers – N12.8 billion.
The presidential spokesman noted that the states were paid in eight instalments between October 2, 2021, and January 11, 2022, while the ninth to 12th instalments are still outstanding.
He recalled data obtained from the Federation Account Department, Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, which it said showed that a total of N477.2 billion was released to the nine states as a refund of the 13 per cent derivation fund on withdrawal from Excess Crude Account (ECA), without deducting derivation from 2004 to 2019, leaving an outstanding balance of N287.04 billion.
According to Shehu, states also got N64.8 billion as a refund of the 13 per cent derivation fund on deductions made by Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited without payment of derivation to Oil Producing states from 1999 to December.
He further stated that the benefitting states still have an outstanding balance of N860.59 billion from the refunds, which he said was approved by President Muhammadu Buhari.