15% derivation: Militant group ask Niger Delta governors to account for N55trn allocation

Niger Delta governors should account for the total sum of N44.68trillion of 13 per cent derivation allocation from 1999 to 2018, the Reformed Niger Delta Avengers (RNDA), a coalition of militants in the Niger Delta has said.

The coalition claimed that financial records at its disposal indicated that from 2018 to date, the 13 per cent derivation funds collected by the state governors in the region accumulated to between N50trillion and N55trillion.

RNDA demanded that President Muhammadu Buhari should henceforth stop paying the 13 per cent derivation funds to the governors.

The group therefore recommended that the 13 per cent derivation should be paid to the oil and gas producing communities in the interest of peace, since the previous ones collected by the governors did not impact positively on the host communities and the people.

These positions are contained in an electronic mail on Thursday by the RNDA Commanding Officer, ‘Maj.-Gen.’ Johnmark Ezon-Ebi, after the coalition rose from its emergency meeting allegedly convened in the creeks.

The coalition claimed that the governors of the oil-producing states had collected the whopping amount apart from the internally generated revenue and monthly allocations from the Federation Account, excluding Excess Crude money,  Paris Club bailout funds, monthly security funds and other funds.

RNDA said President Buhari released Paris Club bailout funds to the governors, running into billions of naira, but unfortunately, the debt profile of the oil producing states in the region amounted to over N1.25 trillion.

It said: “The RNDA, the coalition of militant groups agitating for the overall development of the Niger Delta, most especially for the betterment of the oil and gas producing communities in the creeks, has challenged governors of the Niger Delta to give proper account of over N55 trillion they have collected so far from the Federation Account on 13 per cent derivation from 1999 to 2021.

“The amount is without the IGRs and monthly allocations from the Federation Account. From 1999 to 2018, according to financial records obtained by us, the Niger Delta oil-producing states have received over N44.68 trillion and from 2018 to 2021 they have collected over N50 trillion.

“Despite that Southsouth oil producing  governors are of the opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has never denied them the 13 per cent derivation funds monthly.

“The President also has never denied them even the Paris Club bailout funds. They were given to them in billions of naira for over two consecutive times, yet these Southsouth six oil producing states’ debt profile is huge and running into over N1.25 trillion.”

The group opposed the claim of the Southsouth governors by blaming the region’s underdevelopment on failure to inaugurate the board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

It accused the governors of abandoning and neglecting the development of the oil producing communities, thereby resulting in youth restiveness.