Buhari, govs resolve to end financial crisis

The meeting between President Muhammadu Buhari and the state governors on Tuesday rose with a resolution to end the financial crisis being faced by some state governments.

Zamfara State Governor, Abdulazeez Yari, disclosed this to State House correspondents at the end of the meeting.

Yari, who is also the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum, said instead of bailouts, the governors requested for the refund of Federal Government projects they carried out in their states.

He said the governors also asked that the tax paid by the Nigeria Natural Liquefied Gas Company be paid into the Federation Account and be shared.

The governor added that they also asked the Federal Government to ensure that all monies are paid into the Federation Account for sharing as stipulated by the constitution.

President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo are currently meeting behind closed-doors with all state governors.

The meeting, holding inside the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, is the first of its kind since Buhari’s inauguration on May 29.

Issues such as the debts being owed state governments by the Federal Government and the lifeline being sought by state governors in order to meet their states’ demands are expected to dominate discussions at the meeting.

The meeting started at exactly 10.10am with the arrival of the President.

Among state governors in attendance when the meeting started were those of Rivers, Ogun, Imo, Gombe, Benue, Delta, Niger, Kano, Katsina, Zamfara, Kogi, Borno and Jigawa.

Others were governors of  Kebbi, Kwara, Taraba, Ekiti, Ondo, Kaduna, Oyo, Osun, Edo, Anambra, Sokoto, Ebonyi, Lagos, Adamawa, Cross Rivers, Akwa Ibom and  Yobe States.

Plateau and Bayelsa States were represented by their deputy governors.