ABUJA – Ahead of the 2015 election year, the Nigerian Association of Microfinance Banks (NAMB) has warned that the N220bn funds for Micro Small and Medium Scale Enterprises will not be used for political campaigns.
The President of the association, Mr Valentine Whensu, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday.
He said that all states were entitled to N2bn naira from the fund but stressed that measures had been put in place to ensure that the funds were not diverted for political purposes.
“What the governor of CBN has done and done very well is that whether you are APC or PDP, N2 billion was earmarked for every state in this country.
“So, N72 billion out of that fund is earmarked for every state and then before you can collect the money even as a governor, your house of assembly must legislate because their own collateral is that you are going to drop your ISPO; CBN has right to deduct directly from your allocation.
“I have not seen any legislative arm in this country that you do not have two or three other parties that are there, whether minority or majority.
“So, the minority parties will not keep quiet and allow you to take this money and use it for your own party.
“Again, also as a condition, you must as a governor put this money into a special purpose vehicle whose name you will submit to CBN for them to monitor,” he said.
Whensu said that the association would also act as a whistle blower whenever any state received the allocation. [eap_ad_1] He said that there was a state-based micro finance institution in every state which the national association will liaise with to monitor every state that receives the fund.
“For example in Lagos State, if Lagos State gets the money today, there is an institution called, Lagos State Micro Finance Institute (LASMFI) that deals directly with all MFB in Lagos State.
“When that money is collected it is going to be routed through the LASMFI to all microfinance banks in Lagos State, so there is a check there.
“Again as an association, we are also working that the moment that Lagos state for instance gets the money today, I will make noise to all the MFBs in Lagos to inform them that Lagos state has got this money so we go after LASMFI.
“If anybody is even having intension to collect the money and use for campaign purposes, we will get the information out through the press so that people will know that money is in this state and it is being channelled to another thing.
“We are in pure business, this is not political money, whether it has undertone of politics or not; we, as professionals, will make sure that we monitor every money that comes into our states,” he said. (NAN)
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