Political commentator Darlington Agomuo has suggested that the All Progressives Congress (APC) and some members of the Federal Government were deeply unsettled by Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde’s public comments over alleged outstanding Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) dividend allocations to states.
According to Agomuo, “If APC have their way, they would have arrested Gov Seyi Makinde, if not for the immunity that covers him. Bayo Onanuga and APC in general were so shocked that Seyi Makinde exposed them that much.”
The comment comes amid an increasingly heated political disagreement between Makinde and the Presidency over the handling and distribution of NLNG dividend proceeds.
Makinde recently alleged that states were entitled to significant funds arising from NLNG dividends paid into the Federation Account. Speaking at the 2027 Budget Stakeholders’ Consultative Engagement in Ibadan, the governor said each state was expected to receive more than ₦250 billion and questioned why the money would allegedly not be released until after the 2027 general election.
Makinde said the states had already identified development projects for which the funds could be deployed, arguing that the resources should be used to improve the lives of citizens rather than become entangled in political considerations.
The Presidency, however, strongly rejected the governor’s interpretation.
Presidential Special Adviser on Information and Strategy Bayo Onanuga described Makinde’s claim as false and argued that the figure did not correspond with the Federation Account revenue-sharing formula or the historical record of NLNG dividend payments.
Onanuga's argument was that if every one of Nigeria’s 36 states were to receive ₦250 billion, the states alone would collectively receive ₦9 trillion. Under the cited FAAC formula, states receive 26.72 per cent of distributable Federation Account revenue. The Presidency therefore argued that such an amount would require NLNG to have paid more than ₦33.68 trillion, approximately $25 billion, into the Federation Account in a single dividend declaration—something it said had never happened.
The Presidency further stated that NLNG had paid approximately $21.5 billion in dividends to the Federation over about 25 years, while NLNG itself has reported substantially larger aggregate dividend payments to all its shareholders over the company's operating history. NLNG is a joint venture in which NNPC holds a 49 per cent interest alongside international shareholders.
Against this backdrop, the central issue remains the interpretation of the figures being referenced by Makinde and the precise basis on which the governor arrived at the amount he said was due to each state.
Agomuo's intervention therefore frames the controversy from a political perspective, suggesting that Makinde's disclosure put the APC-led Federal Government under considerable pressure.
However, while Agomuo alleged that the APC would have arrested Makinde if not for constitutional immunity, there is no verified evidence establishing that the APC or the Presidency actually planned to arrest the governor over his statements.
What is clear is that the disagreement has developed into a major political and fiscal controversy, with Makinde demanding transparency over the alleged NLNG proceeds and the Presidency challenging the figures and methodology behind his claim.
The dispute is also taking place against the backdrop of the 2027 political season, with Makinde now pursuing a presidential bid under the Allied Peoples’ Movement (APM).
At the heart of the controversy is therefore a straightforward question: How much NLNG dividend revenue entered the Federation Account, how was it distributed, and what amount—if any—remains outstanding to the states?
Until the underlying financial records, reconciliations and calculations are made public, the competing claims from both sides will continue to fuel political controversy.
For Agomuo, however, the political significance is already clear: Makinde's decision to publicly raise the issue has intensified scrutiny of the Federal Government and placed the APC on the defensive.
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