FCT area councils share N2bn

THE Federal Capital Territory Area Councils Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC), on Wednesday, approved the sharing of N2.071 billion among the six area councils, being revenue and Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) allocations for October.
The committee, which is chaired by the Minister of State for FCT, Chief Olajumoke Akinjide, withheld the sum of N140,129,862.71 being the FCT Administration’s 10 per cent Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), pending when the area councils settle their accumulated debt.
The area councils are: Abaji, Abuja Municipal, Bwari, Gwagwalada, Kuje and Kwali.
Akinjide explained that the JAAC’s decision to withhold the FCTA’s 10 per cent IGR had become necessary to enable the area councils to clear their outstanding debt of N247.08 million.
According to a statement by Mr Oluyinka Akintunde, Special Assistant (Media and Publicity) to the minister, the area councils owed the sum of N144 million, being Fadama III Counterpart Fund, N65.70 million for subsidised tractor sales under the public private partnership arrangement, N7.38 million for 2012 Buffer stock grains, and N30 million for biometrics.
 Out of the total debt, Kwali Area Council accounted for the N52.52 million, followed by Gwagwalada area council, which owed N51.35 million.
Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) and Kuje Area Council owed N49.57 million each; Abaji Area Council, N17.62 million, and Bwari Area Council, N16.45 million.
The minister disclosed that a total sum of N2,211,467,188.86 was received from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) for the FCT Area Councils, representing an increase of N317,066,272.41 or 16.7 per cent over the preceding month’s figure of N1,894,400,916.45.
The breakdown of the FAAC allocation showed that N1.001 billion was received from the five per cent Value Added Tax, N761.91 million from Statutory Revenue Allocation, N228.48 million from Special Revenue Allocation, N23.10 million from refund by Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and N56.77 million being the SURE-P allocation for November 2012.
 The FCT Area Councils had in September 2012 received VAT of N1.101 billion and Statutory Revenue Allocation of N692.68.
With the decision to withhold N140.12 million from Area Councils over accumulated debt, the sum of N2,071,337,326.15 was available for distribution.
Of the N2.071 billion, the FCT Area Councils JAAC distributed N845.98 million to the FCT Universal Basic Education Board (UBEB) for payment of the primary school teachers’ salaries in the six area councils; N95.04 million to FCT Area Councils Pension Board (ACPB) being 15 per cent pension fund as statutorily required, and N22.11 million to FCT Area Councils Service Commission being one per cent training fund, also statutorily required.
The net revenue allocation of N1,108,199,947.27 was shared by the six Area Councils, with Abuja Municipal receiving N243.22 million; Bwari, N193.59 million; Gwagwalada, N190.38 million; Abaji, N165.79 million; Kuje, N163.96 million; and Kwali, N151.25 million.

Tribune