States can do whatever they like with bail out funds – Bauchi Governor

7 years ago

States can do whatever they like with bail out funds – Bauchi Governor

Gov. Mohammed Abubakar of Bauchi State on Monday said state governments had the right to determine how bailout funds from the Federal Government was expended.
The governor made the assertion in Abuja at a meeting organised by Conscience Nigeria, an NGO, on the usage of the Federal Government’s bailout funds to states.

Abubakar said the bailout fund was a loan and as such the states had the right to use it for any other projects.

“Constitutionally, executive powers of the state reside on the governors; when a government of a state takes a loan, ideally that government can utilise that loan in whatever way it feels it is good for people of that state.

“The only thing is that of course transparency requires that in every request a political leader must give account’’, he said.

Abubarkar said the critical thing was for civil society organisations and other Nigerians to ask questions about the utilisation of the fund.

He said settlement of the outstanding salaries of civil servants in the state could be among the other projects that the fund could be used for.

The governor said Bauchi state owed its workers only one month salary while workers in the local government councils were owed two months salaries.

According to him, when he took over as the governor of the state on May, 29, 2015, workers were owed salaries of four months.

“After taking over, we discovered that for gratuity alone, we inherited a debt of N14.5 billion and the four months salaries of course was N8.6 billion.’’

Abubarkar said other commitments such as commercial loans, debts owed to contractors among others, amounted to over N100 billion.

The governor said loan was taken to enable the state to pay the one month salary owed workers in order to calm nerves.

“All these happened before the bailout came up; we were asked to send the total outstanding salaries, which we did, to the tune of N8.6 billion.

“We were given the money and as governor of the state, I have that chance to use the money as I pleased’’, he said.

According to him, some of his colleagues used part of the money to construct roads, some for other purposes.

Mr Tosin Adeyanju, Executive Director, Conscience Nigeria, said there was need for the CSOs to know how the bailout given by the FG to settle outstanding salaries of states was used.

Adeyanju said many of the states still owed salaries in spite of the bailout given to them.

He called on the National Assembly to investigate all the states that owed staff salaries.

According to him, the bailout to states was principally for the settlement of salaries owed civil servants and not for the governors to use for other projects. (NAN)