The Federal Government and the 36 states are set for a showdown over the planned deduction of N950bn from the allocation due to the states in 2022.

To this end, it was learnt that the commissioner for finance in all 36 states are expected to meet in the coming days.

The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on Tuesday, transmitted the 2022 Appropriation Act (Amendment) Bill to the National Assembly, seeking the approval of the federal parliament for a supplementary budget with estimates totalling N150bn.

Buhari also sought approval for another N2.557tn to extend payment for subsidy on petrol.

President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan; and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, read Buhari’s letter dated February 10, 2022, in plenary.

Buhari’s letter read in part, “An additional provision of N2.557tn will be required to fund the petrol subsidy in 2022. Consequently, the Federation Account (main pool) revenue for the three tiers of government is projected to decline by N2tn, while FGN’s share from the account is projected to reduce by N1.05tn.”

This implies that about N950bn would be deducted from the accounts of the states and local governments.

However, the Gombe State Commissioner for Information and Culture Julius Ishaya, urged workers not to be perturbed by the possible withdrawal from federation allocation.

Ishaya said Muhammadu Yahaya has shown capacity to manage resources, adding that deductions wouldn’t affect workers’ salaries.

“His Excellency is a very prudent person. He has proven that overtime, so we will believe in his ingenuity of financial management and we know it is one of the challenges that the governor has capacity to handle,” he said.

Copyright PUNCH.