This was disclosed in a statement released by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation and signed by its Director of Press and Public Relations, Bawa Mokwa, following the FAAC meeting held in Abuja.

According to the statement, the total revenue shared stood at N2.036 trillion, which was allocated among the Federal Government, state governments, and local government councils.

A breakdown of the distributable revenue shows that N1.32 trillion came from statutory revenue, N515.39 billion was generated from Value Added Tax (VAT), while N200 billion was added as augmentation.

From the total allocation, the Federal Government received N789.16 billion, states were allocated N657.60 billion, and local government councils got N468.83 billion. In addition, oil-producing states received N120.76 billion as derivation revenue.

The committee also revealed that total gross revenue for March stood at N2.364 trillion. From this amount, N81.08 billion was deducted as cost of collection, while N246.87 billion was used for transfers, refunds, and savings.

Further analysis showed that from the statutory revenue portion, the Federal Government received N632.26 billion, states got N320.69 billion, and local governments received N247.24 billion, while derivation payments accounted for N120.76 billion.

From the VAT pool of N515.39 billion, the Federal Government received N51.54 billion, states got N283.47 billion, and local governments received N180.39 billion, highlighting the growing role of VAT in supporting subnational revenues.

Meanwhile, the N200 billion augmentation was shared with the Federal Government receiving N105.36 billion, states N53.44 billion, and local governments N41.20 billion.

On revenue performance, FAAC noted that gross statutory revenue rose to N1.699 trillion in March, an increase of N137.91 billion compared to February. This growth played a key role in boosting the total allocation for the month.

However, VAT revenue declined slightly, with N664.43 billion recorded in March, down from N668.45 billion in February.

The report also indicated strong growth in non-oil taxes, including Companies Income Tax, Capital Gains Tax, Stamp Duties, and Excise Duty.

In contrast, revenues from Petroleum Profit Tax, Hydrocarbon Tax, oil and gas royalties, import duties, and the Common External Tariff recorded significant declines, reflecting ongoing fluctuations in oil and trade-related income.

Overall, the FAAC report shows that while Nigeria is seeing improvements in non-oil revenue generation, instability in oil revenues continues to impact the consistency of monthly allocations.

Justice Inyang Ekwo issued a restraining order against the Federal Government on Friday following an ex parte application brought by the counsels to the 36 states, Jibril Otukepa and Ahmed Raji.

While moving the application, Okutepa who led the legal team of the states told the judge that the states would be completely crippled if the federal government should go ahead to deduct the huge amount from the bank accounts of their clients.

In 2006, Nigeria paid $12 billion to get a $18 billion debt write-off by the Paris Club of international creditors.

States and local governments that did not owe the Paris Club, according to reports, later asked for a refund after it was discovered that the payment was made directly from the revenue accruing to the entire federation.

Reports later emerged that some consultants, who claimed a percentage of the refunds as payment for services they said they rendered to the states and local governments, went to court in a bid to get their pay.

The sum of $418 million was agreed as a judgment debt after the Federal Government opted to negotiate an out-of-court settlement with the contractors.

But this move was rejected by the states who sought redress in court after the Federal Government said it would commence the deduction.

The Attorneys-General of the 36 states were listed as plaintiffs in the suit filed by their lawyers on October 27.

Joined as respondents included the President, the Attorney-General of the Federation, the Accountant-General of the Federation, and the Ministry of Finance.

Others were the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Debt Management Office, the Federal Account Allocation Committee, and various commercial banks in the country.

The states, among others, had also sought an order of interim injunction restraining the Federal Government, any of its agencies, or any other person from deducting any money due to the states for the payment of any judgement debts arising from contracts and suits in relation to the Paris Club Refund.

They requested the refund of any money deducted by the government from the Federation Account so far in relation to the issue in dispute, without the express consent of the states.

The states based the application on 13 grounds, which included that the plaintiffs were the attorneys-general and chief law officers of their respective states as created by the Constitution.

“Part of the deductions in the FAAC summary is for the liquidation of judgement debts in favour of persons who neither had any contractual relationship with the plaintiffs/applicants nor obtained any judgement against any of the plaintiffs/applicants,” the fourth ground of the application read.

Speaking during a lecture of the Executive Management Course 14 in Abuja, Wike wondered why governors lament there is no money in their states yet seek a second term in office.

The governor noted that every state has its own advantage and disadvantage, comparing two American states – Houston and California.

The first, according to Wike, is blessed with oil but not as developed as the second which doesn’t have crude oil but is the biggest economy in the United States.

He believes that development can strive if the governor is able to use the advantage for the benefit of the state and its people.

“No state is poor in this country, it is this over-dependence on the Federal Government,” Wike said. “At the end of every month, they send their Accountant-General/Commissioner of Finance for FAAC.”

“Any state that tells you we are poor and they deceive you by saying their state is poor. I keep on telling them ‘if your state is poor, why do you want to be governor? Your state is poor; you want to run the second term.”

He, therefore, charged governors to make good use of the opportunities at their disposal and stop relying solely on the Federal Government for survival.

On the issue of the Value Added Tax, the governor criticised the Federal Government for collecting VATs from states, insisting that “I looked at it and saw that what the Federal Government was collecting is not their own.”

Governors Too Powerful

When he came into office in 2015, Governor Wike recalled that he inherited Rivers State as one that was financially depleted and very close to bankruptcy.

This, to him, is because workers in the state were owed their monthly salaries; pensioners were not paid as well as contractors, describing the situation as being problematic.

Wike of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), explained that what he met on the ground became worse for him because his predecessor, Rotimi Amaechi (of the All Progressives Congress) did not leave a handover note to ease governance.

According to him, institutions should be made strong so that whether a governor is leaving the office or not, governance would not fail as it is a continuum.

He added, “Nigeria is one funny country how a democratically elected governor in the history of Nigeria will take a padlock and lock the court for two years. For two years, the courts were shut down in Rivers State and you know the implication of the courts being shut down.

“We, the governors are too powerful. The President is too powerful. If the governors were not too powerful, how can a governor think of a whole arm of government, the judiciary, and shut it for two years?

“Tell me what will be the fate of those who have problems with their contracts, how do they go for determination of who is wrong or right?” he questioned.

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