Bailout Funds: Eight more States share N65.334b

…CBN tasks beneficiaries on proper use
by Odunewu Segun

The Central Bank of Nigeria has said it has put in place a monitoring mechanism with the task of making sure that the N338 billion bailout fund disbursed to 27 States of the federation is used for the sole purpose of what it was meant for- payment of backlog of workers’ salaries.
The apex bank gave this indication just as it released another N65.334 billion from the N338 billion to eight more States, bringing the total number of States that have accessed the intervention funds to 11 States.
Confirming the disbursement to eight more states, a top official of the apex bank said the central bank was concerned about the diversion of funds by the state governors to other uses other than the payment of workers’ salary arrears.
The new beneficiaries are: Abia- N14.152 billion, Adamawa- 2.378 billion, Bauchi- N8.60 billion, Ebonyi-N4.063 billion, Gombe- N16.459 billion, Kebbi- N 690 million, Ondo- N14.686 billion, Niger- N4.306 billion.
Kwara (N4.320 billion), Osun (N34, 988 billion), Zamfara (N10, 020 billion) had earlier in August got their shares of the intervention fund.
According to a statement from the apex bank, it is going to use its branches nationwide as watchdogs to monitor the disbursement of the special intervention fund to ensure it is used to pay the backlog of workers’ salaries as expected and not diverted by the state governments to other uses.