Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of spending Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) dividends meant for distribution to states.
Makinde claimed that each state was expected to receive more than N250 billion from the NLNG payments.
The governor spoke on Friday during a stakeholders’ meeting on the 2027 budget held at the International Conference Centre in Ibadan.
He said the money had been paid into the Federation Account and the figures reconciled, but alleged that the Federal Government spent the funds without distributing them to the states.
According to Makinde, Oyo State had already identified projects for which it intended to use its share to boost economic growth.
He also criticised suggestions that the payments could be delayed until after the 2027 general elections, insisting that the welfare of Nigerians should take precedence over political considerations.
“They fooled us. The Nigeria LNG paid dividends to the Federal Government, which went straight into the Federation Account, but they spent it.
“So, what do we do? They did the consultancy, reconciled the figures, and each state of the federation was supposed to be paid, but they spent the money alone. The Federal Government spent it alone.
“Each state should receive more than N250 billion but Tinubu cornered it. We were planning towards this, identified projects that we can invest the money in to further expand the economy of Oyo State,” Makinde said.
