UPDATED:OFFICIAL TEXT WITH TABLE RELEASED BY THE PRESS ON NGOZI OKONJO IWEALA ALLEGED FRAUD.

Bellow is an official press released as culled from Sahara Reporters...

FULL TEXT OF THE PRESS RELEASE

FG’s Insincerity over Revenue
Earnings into the Federation
Account
Our attention has been drawn to
the reported plan by the Federal
Government to abandon the
revenue framework upon which
the 2013 budget was prepared
alleging persistent decline in the
gross federally collected revenue
accruing to the Federation
Account and insisting that
revenue will only be shared
based on amount actually earned
rather than what is budgeted.
The latest report which was
credited to the Minister of State
for Finance, Dr Yerima Ngama,
and which is well circulated in
the media is a calculated attempt
to confuse the Nigerian citizens
on the revenue accrued to the
Federation Account and give the
impression that the Federal
Government is under pressure to
augment revenue shortfall, while
in actual fact, the shortfall is as a
result of poor management.
This has necessitated our
decision to put the record
straight for members of the
public. We wish to state that the
revenue profile of the Federation
as painted by the Honourable
Minister of State, Finance is
incorrect and amounts to a gross
distortion of facts and empirical
data of revenue accruing to the
Federation Account.

Continue...

Specifically, while the Minister
put the revenue earned in the
month of July 2013 at N497.98
billion, the Central Bank of
Nigeria (CBN) economic report
for the same period stated that
revenue from oil rose by 0.2 per
cent to N645.65 billion, while
gross non oil receipt (corporate
taxes, custom and excise duties
and custom’s special duties) was
put at N404.53billion a total of
N1090.18Bn revenue which was
higher than the budget estimate
of N702.54 billion approved by
the National Assembly for July
2013.
The attention of unsuspecting
public is drawn to the key
outstanding and recurring issues
with revenue into the Federation
Account Allocation Committee
since 2011 especially the failure
of NNPC to fully account and
remit proceeds of all exports into
the Federation Account.
For example, NNPC outstanding /
underpayment to the Federation
Account since 2011 to date are
captured in the table 1 below:

Table 1: NNPC
Outstanding to Federation
Account:

SN | YEAR          | Amount(NBn)|
1.   |    2011        |       780          |
2.   |    2012        |       930          |
3.   |    2013        |       859          |
      |Sub-Total     |     2,569         |
4.   |NNPC Trade|                       |
      |   Debts        |       414         |
      |    Total        |                       |
      |Outstanding|                       |
      |From NNPC |       2,983       |

The question the Honourable
Minister of State for Finance
need to fully address without
further delay is whether the
N2.983 Trillion held back by
NNPC is not part of the revenue
earned into the Federation
Account meant for the three tiers
of government. Why is the
Minister not demanding full
remittance into the Federation
Account by NNPC and who are
the people profiting from the
fund held by NNPC in foreign
accounts through delayed
remittance and/or non
remittance to the Federation
Account in most of the cases
listed above.
More importantly there are also
serious issues of substantial non
compliance with the 2013 Budget
and non-adherence to
disbursement agreed at regular
monthly FAAC meetings. The
huge outstanding payment
representing shortfalls agreed at
our various FAAC meetings in line
with 2013 budget pending
disbursement is captured in the
table bellow:

Table 2: Outstanding
disbursement from 2013 FAAC
Allocation

SN|   Month           |Amount(NBn)|
1.  |    June 2013    |                      |
    |Augmentation  |     121           |
2.  |    July 2013     |                      |
     |    benchmark  |                      |
     |     deficit         |     140           |
3.  |     Balance      |                      |
     | unpaid on the|                      |
     |      approved  |                      |
     |        N115bn   |                      |
     |  August 2013  |                      |
     |         FAAC       |        115        |
     |                        |                      |
     |    Total            |         376       |

Another serious major concern of
members is the very poor level of
handling of FAAC meetings and
the usually noticeable level of
unpreparedness of the officials
handling the Federation Account.
In the last two years, FAAC
members across the Federation
make minimum of two to three
trips for the usual one day FAAC
meeting. It is on record that
FAAC meetings are repeatedly
cancelled at short or no notices
at all and at grave travelling
dangers to members.
This allows officials including
NNPC to have their ways at will
with serious impact on finances
of the three tiers of government.
Majority of members of FAAC are
fully of the opinion that the
current disruptive nature of FAAC
meetings is a major strategy of
the officials concerned to ensure
lack of cohesion at our meetings
and address critical issues in
view of our usual busy schedules.
We wish to state that the Budget
2013 like all budgets in the past
is an appropriation act of the
National Assembly with the
approved bench mark of $79pb.
Currently, oil price is $114pb and
at no time this year has the price
of oil fallen below $95pb and
with increases in our quota and
production, there is no doubt
that something is greatly amiss
with the management of Nigerian
Oil resources that requires
sustained urgent attention by all
parties, especially the National
Assembly. We are grossly
concerned and wish to state that
this mess should not be allowed
to continue.

Continue...

Excuses by federal officials that
the Nation loses a total 400,000
barrel per day is suspect giving
the level of policing and the multi
billion dollar contract to ex-
militants to ensure safety of oil
pipelines and cargoes. We hope
this alleged losses is not an
organized theft of our oil
resources.
We are equally disturbed with the
gross level of impunity that has
characterized non-adherence to
the appropriation act as passed
by the National Assembly and are
further concerned that this level
of impunity is now such that no
reference is required to be made
to the National Assembly by the
Minister before the law could be
varied.
We therefore call on the National
Assembly to investigate this
apparent fraud in our oil
revenue.

Signed:
Forum of Concerned Members of
Federation Accounts Allocation
Committee (FAAC)

wereallygist.live