ICSAN boss lauds bailout for states

VICE-PRESIDENT of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria (ICSAN), Dr. Nat Ofo, has described the recent bailout of states by President Muhammadu Buhari as a good step in the right direction.

He also commended President Buhari for non-discrimination in the release of the bailout package as all states benefitted not only those owing salary arrears and pensions.

Speaking at a roundtable on Corporate Governance organized by the Institute with the theme, “A case for Corporate Governance Audit for Nigerian Public Companies”, he said the bailout package is in order because the money issued out is from the dividends from LNG which the states have been agitating for.

It would be recalled that the Federal Government released over N713 billion to the states to offset the salary arrears of workers in their various states.

There is also N413.7billion that will be shared between the states and the Federal Government.

The multi-pronged package approved by President Buhari includes the sharing by the Federal and State Governments of $1.7 billion out of the $2 billion remaining in the Excess Crude Account (ECA); the sharing of about $2.1billion sourced from the LNG’s payment to the Federation Account; and a CBN-packaged special intervention fund that will offer financing to the states, ranging between N250 billion to N300 billion, as a soft loan available to states to access for the purposes of paying backlog of salaries.

The President has approved a debt relief programme that will help states restructure their commercial loans currently put at over N680 billion.

Reacting to this development, he said the federal government’s gesture was in order as it would go a long way in alleviating the sufferings of the masses and let people further reap more dividends of democracy.

“Looking at the Amnesty International report which has dubbed Nigeria as one of the corrupt countries, the rot in the system is expected.