OYO STATE DIDN'T TAKE PART IN N570BN HARDSHIP GRANT - MAKINDE COUNTERS FG

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Seyi Makinde, the governor of Oyo State, has denied accepting any share of the N570 billion hardship grant that the federal government is alleged to have paid to the state governments.

During the widespread protests against hunger and suffering, President Bola Tinubu addressed the people of Nigeria via broadcast, stating that the 36 states had received N570 billion from the government.

Additionally, Tunubu stated that Nigeria imports N2 trillion worth of fuel and premium motor spirit, generally referred to as gasoline, on a monthly basis.

He said that during the first half of 2024, the Federal Government’s coffers accumulated ₦9.1 trillion in total fiscal income, a notable rise over the earnings of the previous government.

“Also, more than ₦570bn has been released to the 36 states to expand livelihood support to their citizens, while 600,000 nano-businesses have benefitted from our nano-grants. An additional 400,000 more nan0-businesses are expected to benefit,” the President stated.

However, in a newsletter No 95 |August 2024 personally signed by the governor and shared on his X handle on Thursday, said the state was not in the know of such a grant.

He said, “In my newsletter tonight, I responded to a question from a concerned citizen of Oyo State regarding the claim that the Federal Government ‘gave’ States over N570 billion as some kind of ‘hardship fund’ for citizens.

“Before I speak more on further actions we have taken to show our commitment to productivity and sustainability, let me respond to a long message I received earlier in the week from a concerned citizen. The message was about a purported N570 billion Hardship Fund “given” to the 36 States by the Federal Government. I was queried about what I used the money for.

“Let me state categorically that this is yet another case of misrepresentation of facts. The said funds were part of the World Bank-assisted NG-CARES project—a Programme for Results intervention.

“The World Bank facilitated an intervention to help States in Nigeria with COVID-19 Recovery. CARES means COVID-19 Action Recovery Economic Stimulus. It was called Programme for Results because States had to use their money in advance to implement the programme. After the World Bank verified the amount spent by the State, it reimbursed the States through the platform provided at the Federal level. The Federal Government did not give any State money; they were simply the conduit through which the reimbursements were made to States for money already spent.

“It is important to note that the World Bank fund is a loan to States, not a grant. So, States will need to repay this loan. Note also that NG-CARES, which we christened Oyo-CARES in our State, predates the present federal administration.

“So, in direct response to the message, the Federal Government did not give Oyo State any money. We were reimbursed funds (N5.98 billion in the first instance and N822 million in the second instance) we invested in the three result areas of NG-CARES, which includes inputs distribution to smallholder farmers within our State. In fact, when the World Bank saw our model for the distribution of inputs preceded by biometric capturing of beneficiary farmers, they adopted it as the NG-CARES model.”

Makinde’s denial follows the national protests against hunger and suffering, which were met with controversy.

While the protest was said to have been nonviolent in many places, it had descended into violence in a few northern states when thieves stole property and supplies owned by both the government and private citizens.

A few demonstrators in the north have also been observed waving the Russian flag, a move that has drawn strong criticism and been classified as treasonous.

Since then, the Department of State Service (DSS) has declared that sponsors of the violent protests have been detained and that an inquiry has been launched, with seven Polish nationals among them.

The Services also vowed to announce the names of the sponsors behind the violent protests.