Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose has condemned the decision to withdraw the sum of $1billion from the nation’s Excess Crude Account to fund the fight against Boko Haram terrorists.
The governor said this while addressing reporters on Friday in his office at the Government House in Ado Ekiti, the state capital.
“I stand for the people of Nigeria, I stand for the truth; enough of these scandals, enough of this looting,” he said.
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Fayose’s reaction comes barely 24 hours after the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) gave permission to the Federal Government to utilise $1billion from Nigeria’s excess crude account to fight terrorism.
Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State had told State House correspondents on Thursday in Abuja that the nod was given by the NGF Chairman and Governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari, during the 83rd National Economic Council meeting.
The excess crude account, which stands at $2.3billion as at December 13, 2017, is the money above the benchmark price of oil in the international market saved for future expenses.
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The Ekiti state governor, however, said he was never in support of the permission to withdraw such huge amount of money, noting that it was not in the interest of the Nigerian people.
Instead, he questioned the motive behind the withdrawal of the money, alleging that the government of the All Progressives Congress (APC) might divert such to fund the forthcoming general elections.
“I want to dissociate myself from such decision because it does not represent the state of the Nigerian nation and the mood of the nation. These are scandals, these are issues and Nigerians must ask questions.
“I’m, therefore, asking the question; is this withdrawal of $1billion (from the excess crude account) not an attempt to use such money for the 2019 elections? This is very clear, coming at a time like this when Nigerians are hungry and angry,” he said.
Governor Fayose stressed further that the fund if withdrawn must be shared among the three tiers of government; Federal, state, local governments.
He also said that states that do not key into such decision to fund anti-terrorism war should be given their share of the fund and asked the Federal Government to account for the money spent so far on fighting the insurgents.
“Rather than allow my people to suffer, and this money is going to end in the pocket of few, few people who claim to be fighting in the North East, we are demanding that they should equally give account of the ones they have spent in time past because our commonwealth is under threat,” he said.
