THISDAY

Governors to Meet Buhari on Bailout Strategy on Tuesday

- Festus Akanbi, Lagos and Chuks Okocha in Abuja

President Muhammadu Buhari is set to meet with the governors of the 36 states of the federation on Tuesday to discuss modalities for the bail out from the poor finances of the states and payment of debts owed them for the execution of federal projects in their respective states.

Mean while, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporatio­n (NNPC) yesterday assured Nigerians that the nation’s four refineries will resume operations in July.

A Presidency source that confided in THISDAY, saidthat the President has agreed to meet all the states governors at the Presidenti­al Villa Abuja. The meeting is sequel to the last Tuesday’s meeting of the governors where the issue of the precarious financial situation in the states were discussed.

The poor finances of the state has led to the backlog of salary to civil servants and threat of anim pending labour un rest in the affected states. Some of the states with backlog of salaries include Osun, Rivers, Oyo, Ekiti, Kwara, Kogi, Ondo, Plateau, Benue, and Bauchi.

The salary arrears vary from state to state. While some state so we three months, there were others that owe their civil servants up to seven months. Sources said the governors are asking that where it is not possible to grant the affected states the bailout being sought, the federal government should not hesitate to effect a quick payment of debts owed to the states on account of federal government projects executed bythestate­s.The chairman of the Governors Forum, Abdulazeez Yari said that instead of sending a bad signal by asking for bailout and because the governors area ware ofthe implicatio­ns, “we are asking the federal government to pay the states for the federal government jobs that have been executed by the states. The federal government is owing some states up to N 10billion for federaljob­sexecuted.So, we would be asking the federal government to settle the back log owed to the states. The federal government is owing some states N10 billion, N20 Billion, N30 billion and Lagos State N50 Billion. So, if we can get back some of these money, we can be able to settle some of the backlog of wages and salaries.”

Speaking on the resumption of production facilities are at the nation’s refineries, spokes person for NNPC, Ohi Alegbe, explained that the on heads of security agencies in the state going phased maintenanc­e of the refineries wasn earing completion and that the facilities would soon commence production.

“I think by July, the fourre fineries should beg into work,” Aleg be was quoted by AFP as saying. He said the two refineries in Port Har court are scheduled to beg into receive crude this week while those in Warri and Port Har court would follow shortly after.

Throwing lightin to the on-going turn around maintenanc­e of the refineries, which began in November 2014 , the corporatio­n’s image maker disclosed that the exercise was being handled by NNPC’s in-house engineers, adding: “We had tore sort to in-house engineers after the original builders of the refineries, who were called into do the job, kept coming up with outrageous bills,” he said.

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