By Adedapo Adesanya
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the 36 state governors in the country and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Mr Nyesom Wike, to disclose details of federal allocations meant for local governments and the FCT.
In freedom of information requests dated January 27, 2024, and signed by SERAP deputy director, Mr Kolawole Oluwadare, the group implored them to promptly invite the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate the actual disbursement and spending of federal allocations meant for local governments in the states and the FCT since May 1999.
The organisation cited the former president, Mr Muhammadu Buhari, who had in December 2022 alleged that, “If the money from the federation account to the state is about N100 million, N50 million will be sent to the chairman but he will sign that he received N100 million. The chairman will pocket the balance and share it with whoever he wants to share it with.”
SERAP, in a statement on Sunday, in the light of this revelation by Mr Buhari, “Nigerians have the right to know the details of actual disbursement and spending of federal allocations in your state and the FCT.”
“States and the FCT should be guided by transparency and accountability principles and proactively publish information pertaining to their actual disbursement and spending of federal allocations meant for local governments,” the group noted, stating that, “Opacity in the amounts of federal allocations actually disbursed to local governments in your state has continued to have negative impacts on the fundamental interests of the citizens and the public interest.”
The organisation said it was “seriously concerned that years of allegations of corruption and mismanagement of federal allocations meant for local governments have contributed to widespread poverty, underdevelopment and lack of access to public goods and services in several states.”
“According to our information, the 36 states in Nigeria and the federal capital territory, Abuja, have collected over N40 trillion federal allocations meant for the 774 local governments areas in the country and FCT.
“The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) disbursed to states N225.21 billion federal allocations meant for local governments in November 2023 alone. States also collected N258,810,449,711.47 federal allocations meant for local government areas in December 2023,” it noted.