Governors met in Abuja, on Monday, to deliberate on issues surrounding the economy and the Paris Club refunds.
The governors, who met behind closed-doors did not brief journalists on the resolutions they reached.
But a top official at the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) secretariat in Abuja, hinted our correspondent that the meeting was held to discuss and resolve contentious issues surrounding Paris Club refund, the nation’s economy, among others.
Daily Trust reports that the NGF recently berated the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, over alleged plans to deduct about $418 million from the Federation Account to pay private contractors and firms allegedly owed by the 36 states and local governments over the Paris Club refund.
The governors, who accused the AGF of bias in the manner he was handling the matter, wondered why he, as a public officer, was “eager to ensure that public funds were transferred to private individuals and entities even when the alleged debt was being disputed and subject of pending litigations”.
This was contained in a statement signed by the Forum’s Head of Media and Public Affairs, Abdulrazaque Barkindo.
The NGF’s comment was in reaction to a statement by Mr Malami’s media aide, Umar Gwandu, who had supported deductions of the states’ resources amounting to $418 million from the federation account.
A Federal High Court Abuja had stopped the federal government from deducting $418 million from the accounts of the state government to settle the judgment debts concerning the Paris and London clubs refund.
The Forum’s Head of Media and Public Affairs, Abdulrazaque Barkindo told our correspondent last night that “If you have been following the forum, you will know that there are a range of issues coming up. So I want us to allow them to resolve the issues first. Nobody has anything so don’t be jittery.” – Daily Trust.
