The Bayelsa government on Monday says it has received its share of the N570 billion grants from Federal Governments to states referred to by President Bola Tinubu during a recent broadcast in response to the hunger protest.
Mr Timipre Seipolu, Technical Adviser to Bayelsa Governor on Treasury stated that the state has so far got N10.8 monthly for May while giving a breakdown of the states income and expenditures for May, June and July 2024.
Seipolu explained that the N570 billion referenced by President Tinubu was part of the NG Cares funds for social interventions in collaboration with the World Bank.
“Recently it’s been on the news that over N500 and something billion given to states in the country and some governors have actually come to try to explain. how the funds came the funds are actually coming under NG Cares.
“The NG Cares program is a program run by the states the Federal Government and the World Bank and the program is running in such a way that the states expected to make some expenditures.
“These expenditures include areas of agriculture through FADAMA and after some period, say quarterly, the expenditures are refunded. That is after the projects are independently verified.
“The support to SMEs and individuals like the vulnerable and elderly are dome in accordance to World Bank templates before refunds can be made and not complying with the template can lead to delays.
“So the N10.8 billion the state received for two months was money that the government through the NG Cares actually spent on projects in the state,” Seipolu said.
On the financial position of the state, Seipolu said that the available fund stands at N112.26 billion earmarked for ongoing infrastructure projects across the state.
Earlier, Mrs Ebiuwou Koku-Obiyai, Commissioner for Information, Orientation and Strategy wrestated the commitment of the government to the transparency laws which makes it mandatory to disclose the income and expenditure profile of the state.
She lauded the media for objective reportage of the state.