Politics
FG depletes Excess Crude Account by $1.68bn in three weeks
The Federal Government has depleted the Excess Crude Account, ECA, by $1.68 billion between November 25 and December 19, leaving a balance of $631 million in the account.
This is according to figures obtained from Federation Account Allocation Committee, which put the balance in the account as at November 25 at $2.319 billion.
However, at the resumed meeting on Wednesday at the headquarters of the ministry of finance, the balance, according to the Permanent Secretary in ministry, Mahmoud Dutse, had dropped to $631m.
Dutse, who while briefing journalists shortly after the meeting, said withdrawals were made by the Federal Government from the ECA to settle the last tranche of the Paris Club Refund.
He said: “The balance in the ECA is $631m. The final payment for the Paris Club Refund to states was made and the figure was deducted and that’s what accounts for the difference.”
Read also: 2019 budget threatened as oil price falls below benchmark
When queried on the legality of such deductions to be made for such purpose, Dutse said the committee got an approval from President Muhammadu Buhari and the Federal Executive Council before making the withdrawal.
He said: “A decision was taken to make this refund and part of that decision is that the refund should be funded from the ECA. Federal Executive Council, the President approved the money.”
When the Accountant-General of the Federation, Alhaji Ahmed Idris, was accosted on his way out of the meeting to clarify the withdrawal, he said that due process was followed before the withdrawal was made.
“You can go and find out from the National Assembly if we got approval for it but due process was followed before the fund was released.”
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