Oyo State presses Nigeria’s Presidency to account for NLNG dividends

Oyo State challenged Nigeria’s Presidency on 19 October to explain how Nigeria LNG (NLNG) dividends received under President Bola Tinubu were distributed among federal, state and local governments. Governor Seyi Makinde says a reconciliation found a shortfall of about ₦9 trillion owed to states and local councils; the Presidency disputes his related claim that each state is owed about ₦250 billion.

The dispute concerns money that state and local governments say should reach them through the Federation Account. Makinde’s demand for an accounting follows his allegation that the federal government withheld NLNG dividends due to the states. The underlying reconciliation and allocation records have not been released in the accounts of the dispute, leaving the alleged shortfall unverified.

Makinde’s claim and the reconciliation

Makinde raised the ₦250 billion-per-state claim at a 2027 budget consultation in Ibadan on 16 October, according to Ripples Nigeria’s account of the Presidency’s response. His claim concerns sums allegedly withheld until after the 2027 elections; no published payment schedule in the cited accounts establishes that allegation.

Why the Presidency disputes ₦250 billion per state

Presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga called Makinde’s per-state figure false. He said ₦250 billion for each of Nigeria’s 36 states would total ₦9 trillion before any allocation to the federal government, the Federal Capital Territory or local councils. Under the existing revenue-sharing formula, states collectively receive 26.72% of distributable Federation Account revenue, he said.

Onanuga argued that a ₦9 trillion state share from a single NLNG dividend declaration would require more than ₦33.68 trillion, or about $25 billion, to have been paid into the Federation Account. The Presidency said NLNG had paid approximately $21.5 billion in dividends to the federation over 25 years, including less than $3 billion under Tinubu. Those figures are the Presidency’s account of the payments; they do not show how the more recent receipts were divided.

Campaign seeks dividend and allocation records

The Makinde-Daura Presidential Campaign Organisation called for publication of NLNG dividend receipts, Federation Account Allocation Committee decisions and official communications showing what was received, approved for distribution and scheduled for payment. It argued that a 25-year dividend total cannot establish what was available during the period at issue. Those records would bear directly on whether any payments due to states remain outstanding.