The Presidency and Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde have locked horns over an alleged ₦250 billion Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) dividend windfall.
Governor Makinde, who is also the presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), claimed that the federal government was deliberately withholding the funds from each state until after the 2027 general elections.
He argued that the money had already been earmarked for economic expansion projects at the state level.
In response, the Presidency issued a statement via Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, describing the claim as false, misleading, and defying basic economic reality.
The Presidency noted that distributing ₦250 billion to each of the 36 states would total ₦9 trillion—excluding the federal government, FCT, and local councils—which exceeds NLNG’s entire lifetime dividend payout of approximately $21.5 billion over 25 years.
Doubling down on his assertions, Governor Makinde fired back through his campaign organisation and media aides, accusing the Presidency of evading the core issue.
The governor maintained that a reconciliation exercise conducted by a Nigeria Governors’ Forum consultant identified a shortfall of about ₦9 trillion owed to states and local councils.
He challenged the federal government to explain how past NLNG dividends were disbursed and to publish official financial records.
The Makinde-Daura Campaign Organisation also waded into the war of words, dismissing the federal government’s defense as propaganda.
The campaign challenged President Bola Tinubu to clarify directly whether the dividends have been paid out or if they are indeed being withheld, rather than resorting to personal attacks.
They asserted that the administration was jittery over the growing popularity of Makinde’s presidential bid.
As the political tension escalates ahead of the 2027 polls, both camps remain deadlocked over transparency in federation accounts.
While the Presidency maintains that the figures cited are mathematically impossible based on NLNG’s historical revenue, the Oyo State governor insists that verifiable audit and reconciliation reports support his claims of delayed allocations.
