The Presidency has rejected Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde’s allegation that the Federal Government withheld N250 billion in Nigeria LNG dividends due to each state until after the 2027 elections.
In a statement issued on Sunday, presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga described the allegation as false and accused the governor of using misleading claims to advance his presidential ambition.
Makinde had raised the allegation on Friday during the 2027 Budget Stakeholders’ Consultative Engagement at the International Conference Centre, University of Ibadan.
‘Each state was supposed to get ?250 billion. We had already identified projects that would expand Oyo State’s economy. But they have now said the money will not be paid until after the election. Is the election more important than the people of Nigeria?’ the governor said.
According to the Presidency, Makinde also alleged that the Federal Government had spent the money.
Onanuga challenged the figures behind the governor’s claim, arguing that paying N250 billion to each of the 36 states would require N9 trillion for the states alone, excluding allocations to the Federal Government, the Federal Capital Territory and the 774 local government councils.
He said states receive 26.72 per cent of distributable Federation Account revenue under the Federation Account Allocation Committee formula.
For their combined share to reach N9 trillion, he argued, NLNG would have had to pay more than N33.68 trillion, approximately $25 billion, into the Federation Account in a single declaration.
‘NLNG has never paid $25 billion in dividends to the Federation Account in a single payout,’ the statement said.
The Presidency put the company’s total dividend payments to the Federation over the past 25 years at approximately $21.5 billion, with less than $3 billion received since President Bola Tinubu assumed office.
‘Therefore, any claim that a single payout exceeds the company’s entire lifetime distribution to the Federation-and is being withheld-defies basic logic and economic reality,’ Onanuga said.
The presidential adviser accused Makinde of making increasingly misleading statements since embarking on what the Presidency described as his presidential bid.
He also recalled the governor’s description of increased financial flows from the Federation Account to states, including Oyo, as ‘voodoo’.
‘Under Nigerian law, Governor Makinde is free to pursue his presidential ambition. He should desist from making falsehoods and disinformation the hallmarks of his campaign,’ Onanuga said.
The Presidency urged Nigerians to disregard the allegation, saying it could mislead citizens and fuel disaffection against the Federal Government.