State governors rose from a meeting early yesterday announcing a decision to seek legal redress at the Supreme Court over what they called illegal funds deductions by the Federal Government, including withdrawals for petrol subsidy and Sovereign Wealth Fund.
In a communique, the Nigerian Governors' Forum said they will challenge "continuing illegal deductions from the Federation Account towards offsetting oil subsidy payments, Excess Crude Account and other unconstitutional withdrawals by the Federal Government." Deduction for petrol subsidy has remained a sticking point in relations between the governors and the Federal Government since last year.
Pressure from the governors to stop the withdrawals contributed towards the President Jonathan's decision to end petrol subsidy in January though he had to reverse this after street protests.
Chairman of the forum, Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi, read the communique to journalists, after the meeting attended by 21 governors and 6 deputy governors.
The governors also sympathised with the government and people of Plateau State on the recent violence, and appealed to the Federal Government to urgently commence the recruitment, intensive training, equipping and proper deployment of security agents across the country.
They also called on the Customs and Immigration Services to tighten security at the nation's borders.
An economic and security intervention committee was set up, with membership from Rivers, Bayelsa, Ekiti, Abia, Plateau, Adamawa and Zamfara states to meet with President Jonathan on an emergency economic intervention plan focusing on agriculture and other economic regeneration programmes for employment generation in the Northern states.
Governors who attended the meeting were these of Katsina, Kaduna, Borno, Zamfara, Kebbi, Taraba, Jigawa, Kogi, Enugu, Delta, Lagos, Ekiti, Ondo, Ebonyi, Abia, Plateau, Rivers, Bayelsa, Anambra, Gombe, and Adamawa states.
Deputy governors of Kano, Nasarawa, Niger, Kwara, Ogun and Yobe states were also in attendance.
Daily Trust