States and federal governments will have to brace up for hard times again as the amount shared for the month of September 2016, shrunk to N420 billion from N510.2 billion in the previous month.
Addressing journalists at the end of the Federation Account
Allocation Committee (FAAC) meeting in the Abuja on Thursday, the permanent secretary of the federal ministry of finance Dr Mahmoud Isa Dutse attributed the decline to the “activities of vandals in the Niger Delta Inspite of the appreciation in the price of crude oil in the international market.
Dutse lamented that crude oil export volume decreased by 1.5 million barrels in June, 2016 as a result of the activities of Nigeria Delta vandals and appealed that “we need to do everything possible to normalize things in the Niger Delta.”
Other reasons for the decline were the Force Majeure declared at Bonny terminals and the subsisting one at the the Forcados terminal as well as the shut- and shut-down of pipelines for repairs and maintenance.
Dutse added that there was decrease in the volume of dutiable imports, receipts from Joint Venture Cash Call, foreign companies income tax and Value Added Tax (VAT).
For statutory disbursements in the month of September, the federal government got N120.351 billion; state governments received N61.044 billion; local governments were given N47.062 billion while mineral producing states got N13.729 billion.
In addition, the three tiers of government shared a total of N61.694 billion with the federal government receiving N9.254 billion; state governments, N30.847 billion and local governments, N21.593 billion.
To make up the numbers, an additional N41.402 billion exchange gains accruals and another N63.386 excess Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT) were shared among the three beneficiaries.
Aside from the disbursements, the permanent secretary disclosed that the funds in the Excess crude Account remains N2.454 billion.
He also expressed optimism that Nigeria’s potential for growth remains high given the recent announcement by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that Nigeria’s economy is now larger than that of South Africa. This development he said, “will make us a major destination for investors and it shows that Nigeria is on the part of growth.”
The Accountant General of the Federation, (ÀGF) Alhaji Idris Ahmed, attributed Nigeria’s economy overtaking that of South Africa to the massive capital investment made by the federal government and he also reiterated that “we will come out of this recession soon as all the indices and parameters point to this.”
When the permanent secretary and team of federal government delegation left, the Edo state commissioner for finance and chairman finance commissioners forum Mr. John Inegbedion told journalists that the cost of collection deducted by revenue generating agencies like the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) were unconstitutional.
However, he admitted that it was politically agreed by all stakeholders that the agencies should go ahead and receive cost of collection because the federal government was not able to fund them properly and that limited their ability to function well so it was agreed to let them have it.
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