Buhari’s Minister debunks claims on printing of N60bn

Zainab Ahmed, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, has debunked the claim made by the Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, that the Central Bank of Nigeria had to print between N50billion and N60billion for states to share in March at the meeting of the Federation Account Allocation Committee. According to her, the claim is untrue.

Ahmed said it is very sad that the governor could make such a baseless claim. She explained that the money being shared monthly at FAAC is revenue generated.

Recall that Obaseki was last week quoted as raising the alarm over Nigeria’s financial position which he said made the CBN to print about N60billion to augment allocation shared by states in March.

“When we got FAAC for March, the Federal Government printed additional N50-N60 billion to top-up for us to share.

“This April, we will go to Abuja and share. By the end of this year, our total borrowings are going to be within N15-N16 trillion,” Obaseki had lamented over the weekend.

But while answering questions from State House correspondents on Wednesday, the minister said Obaseki’s claim was not factual.

“The issue that was raised by the Edo State Governor, for me, is very sad because it is not a fact,” Ahmed said.

“What we distribute at FAAC is a revenue that is generated and in fact, distribution revenue is a public information.

“We publish revenue generated by FIRS, the Customs and the NNPC and we distribute at FAAC.

“So, it is not true to say we printed money to distribute at FAAC. It is not true.”

On the issue of borrowing, the minister added, “Nigeria’s debt is still within sustainable limit.

“What we need to do as I have said several times is to improve our revenue to enhance our capacity to service, not only our debt, but to service the needs of running government on day-to-day basis.

“So, our debt currently at about 23% to GDP is at a very sustainable level, if you look at all the reports that you see from multilateral institutions,” she added.