Commissioners of finance of 36 states have backed the planned audit of the utilisation of the N510bn disbursed to states last year.

Chairman, Forum of Finance Commissioners of the Federation Account Allocation Committee, Mahmoud Yunusa confirmed the endorsement while speaking during an interview in Abuja .

Yunuda said the audit firms appointed by the Federal Government will receive full support and cooperation from the states.

He said, “The plan of the Federal Government to audit the fiscal sustainability plan of the states is welcome. It is welcome because we have nothing to hide in the states. The resources are no longer there; and so, whatever resources that we have must be effectively, transparently and judiciously used for the benefit of the people.

“The expectations of the people are very high and the resources are very lean day-by-day; and so, we have to add value to the people. People are clamouring for change and we have to look for a way to ensure that the lives of people are changed.”

He said the states will work with the Federal Government to tackle recession.

Yunusa said the states are working towards generating enough revenue internally for the payment of salaries.

He said, “The recession is a problem but we should see it as a blessing in disguise, because before now, all the states relied solely on the Federal Government; but now, because the money is no longer there, we are now forced to look inward for the opportunities and potential in our respective states and how to exploit them.

“We have to reduce the cost of governance and plug all the loopholes in our expenditure. This problem has helped us to look at our revenue and restructure our expenditure to fit into the realities that we have on the ground.”

Recall that the Federal Government had appointed 8 accounting firms to evaluate the rate of compliance by state governments with the implementation of the Fiscal Sustainability Plan.

The states had signed onto the plan before benefiting in the Federal Government’s N510bn budget support facility.