A fresh war of words has erupted between Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, and the Presidency over the alleged withholding of ₦250 billion in Nigeria LNG Limited dividends due to each state.

While the Presidency dismissed the claim as false, Makinde has doubled down, insisting that a reconciliation exercise conducted by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum uncovered a shortfall of about ₦9 trillion owed to states and local governments.

The governor had alleged that the funds would not be released until after the 2027 general elections, a claim the Presidency described as misleading and economically impossible.

Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, argued that paying ₦250 billion to each of the 36 states would amount to ₦9 trillion, a figure he said exceeded the total dividends NLNG had ever paid into the Federation Account in a single payout.

But Makinde’s camp countered that the Presidency failed to address the substance of the allegation, particularly the reported reconciliation exercise and the fate of the $3 billion received under the current administration.

The Oyo governor’s media adviser, Sulaimon Olanrewaju, said the Federal Government had accepted the findings of the exercise, which identified a shortfall of about ₦9 trillion due to states and local governments.

He questioned how the dividends paid into the Federation Account had been disbursed, asking whether states and local governments had received their shares and how the amounts were calculated.