Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has accused the Federal Government of spending Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) dividends that he said were meant to be shared among the 36 states.
Makinde claimed that each state was expected to receive more than N250 billion from the payments but had yet to receive its share. He made the allegation on Friday during a stakeholders’ meeting on the 2027 budget at the International Conference Centre in Ibadan.
According to the governor, the dividends had been paid into the Federation Account and the relevant figures reconciled before the funds were allegedly spent by the Federal Government without distribution to the states.
The Oyo governor said state governments had anticipated receiving the money and were already considering projects that could be funded with their allocations.
Makinde said his administration had identified investments for Oyo State’s expected share, which he believed could help expand economic activity and support development projects.
“They fooled us. The Nigeria LNG paid dividends to the Federal Government, which went straight into the Federation Account, but they spent it,” he said.
He further alleged that the figures had been reconciled and that each state was supposed to receive its allocation, but the money was spent without being shared.
“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.
The claims were made by the governor at the budget stakeholders’ meeting. Details of the alleged expenditure and the basis for the stated allocation were not provided in the account of his remarks.
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Makinde also criticised suggestions that payment to the states could be delayed until after the 2027 general elections.
He argued that the welfare of Nigerians should take priority over political considerations and maintained that states needed access to the funds to implement planned projects.
The governor’s comments highlight concerns over the distribution of revenues among the different tiers of government and the impact that delayed allocations could have on state budgets.