Former Minister for the Economy
& Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, yesterday described as
“false and malicious,” the allegation by Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo
State, that she spent $2.1 billion from the Excess Crude Account, ECA, without
authorization.
Speaking through her MediaAdviser, Mr. Paul Nwabuikwu, in Abuja, the ex-minister said that there was no
unauthorized expenditure from the ECA under her watch in the Finance Ministry.
According to her, decisions on
withdrawals from the ECA were discussed at monthly meetings of the Federation
Accounts Allocation Committee, FAAC, attended by Finance Commissioners from the
36 states.
It will be recalled that after
the National Economic Council meeting on Monday, Governor Adams Oshiomhole of
Edo State told newsmen that “Dr Okonjo-Iweala reported by November 2014 that we
had $4.1bn.
Today, the Accountant-General’s
office reported that we have $2.0bn which means the minister spent $2.1bn
without authority of the NEC and that money was not distributed to states, it
was not paid to the three tiers of government”. The ‘unauthorized’ spending,
according to the economic council is among the anomalies discovered in the
management of the nation’s economy between 2012 and May 2015.
Denying the allegation however,
Dr Okonjo-Iweala said: “It is curious that in their desperation to use the
esteemed National Economic Council for political and personal vendetta, the
persons behind these allegations acted as if the constitutionally-recognized
FAAC, a potent expression of Nigeria’s fiscal federalism, does not exist.
“But Nigerians know that
collective revenues, allocations and expenditures of the three tiers of
government are the concern of the monthly FAAC meetings,” the minister said.
They failed before, they will
fail again — Okonjo-Iweala
She added that Governor
Oshiomhole and some others like him, had made futile efforts at rubbishing her
in the past and that the current effort would fail like the ones before it.
According to her, “it is clear
that this is the latest chapter of a political witch-hunt by elements who are
attempting to use the respected National Economic Council for ignoble purposes
having failed abysmally in their previous attempts to tar the Okonjo-Iweala
name.
“It will be recalled that one
of such attempts took place in May when some of these governors, hiding under
the auspices of the Nigerian Governors Forum, asked Okonjo-Iweala to explain
$20 billion alleged to be missing from the same ECA.
“The Finance Ministry
subsequently issued a news release and published an advertorial in national
newspapers on May 25, 2015, giving details of what the Federal Government and
states received from the ECA in the last four years. It also provided details
of the use of the funds for payment of petrol subsidies for the Nigerian public
and SURE-P allocations to the three tiers for development purposes.
“After the publication, the
accusers lost their voice. But the latest allegations show that these persons
are still in the business of throwing up wild, unsubstantiated figures to
damage Okonjo-Iweala’s name. For instance, within the last few months, Governor
Oshiomhole and his fellow travelers have asked Okonjo-Iweala to account for
“missing” $30 billion, $20 billion and now $2.1 billion. What they don’t seem
to understand is that the strategy has lost all credibility because the
falsehood is clear for all to see,” she said.
She wondered how some governors
who fought the Federal Government’s efforts to leave robust savings in the ECA
and even took the Federal Government to court over the matter now turn around
to make such unfounded allegations. She also acknowledged the efforts of
governors who are working hard to overcome the current revenue challenges
facing their states without resorting to character assassination and blame
games.
The former minister also said
she pioneered the practice of publishing monthly updates of all allocations to
different tiers of government in order to empower Nigerians with information
and knowledge of government revenues and expenditure.
“This enabled the Nigerian
public to ask questions about the utilization of these resources. Of course
many elected and appointed public officials were not happy with this
development”, she claimed.
Publishing government revenues
and expenditure, Dr. Okonjo-Iweala, said, continued till the end of the
Goodluck Jonathan administration as well as periodic updates on the Excess
Crude Account, subsidy payments for verified claims by oil marketers for fuel
imports and SURE-P payments to the three tiers of government.
She insisted that the idea that
she spent $2.1 billion without authorization “is simply not credible given that
details of government receipts and expenditure are public knowledge”.
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