Abuja, April 2, 2023 – The 36 state governors are to engage the security agencies, the central bank, the inland revenue service and others stakeholders on the management of their security votes.
Abdulrazaque Bello-Barkindo, their Spokesman, said this in a statement on Sunday.
He quoted Asishana Okauru, the Director General of the Nigeria Governors Forum, as disclosing this in a notice of meeting he issued.
Bello-Barkindo said the virtual meeting, scheduled for Tuesday, was intended for the governors “to meet with all the economic and financial agencies in the country with a view to ironing out thorny issues surrounding their states’ security votes to establish a better option of managing the funds”.
He said the decision to make the meeting virtual was to ensure full attendance by all the relevant officers in the matter.
According to him, those invited to the meeting, being called at the instance of the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), include the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC), the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Central Bank of Nigeria, (CBN).
“Furthermore, the meeting will also consider deepening the management and expansion of the cashless policy which took effect from the time of the redesigning of the national currency, the Nigerian naira, last year, to further the financial inclusion of all citizens in the ensuing scheme of things, going forward.
“This meeting is called at the instance of the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit, NFIU, in its letter of 30th March, which was addressed to the Chairman of the NGF and signed by the NFIU Director, Modibbo Hamman Tukur.
“The letter said that apart from the facilities for national financial inclusion, it is also putting on the table the uniform development and cooperation on the national addressing and post code project, which will put Nigeria on the same pedestal as all advanced countries across the globe.
“Also on the agenda is a consensus on harmonizing and updating the national tax collection and business entry standards and its requirements to help respond to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the European Union (EU) grey listing in which Nigeria appeared.
“All governors are advised to prioritize the meeting as its contents had been discussed at the NGF emergency meeting of Thursday 30th March, where it was unanimously agreed that a meeting with the afore-mentioned agencies was imperative.” (GBN)
