The National Economic Council (NEC) on Thursday said former President Goodluck Jonathan shared the Ecological Fund to states governed by the Peoples Democratic Party during his administration.

The Council alleged that PDP states got N2bn each while opposition states were left out.

The NEC, chaired by the Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, has all state governors  and some ministers as members.

Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai while speaking with State House correspondents said he briefed the council, being the chairman of the 11-man committee investigating the Management of the Ecological Fund.

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El-Rufai said, “The committee established beyond all doubts that in 2013, the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan gave N2bn to certain states of the federation but excluded other states.

“The states that got it were all PDP states and states of other parties that were sympathetic to the PDP like Labour Party in Ondo and APGA in Anambra State.

“Nineteen states and the FCT did not get the N2bn from the Ecological Fund.  These states are Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Borno, Edo, Ekiti, Imo, Jigawa, Kano, Kwara and Lagos.

“Others are Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Osun, Oyo, Rivers, Sokoto, Yobe and Zamfara.

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“So, essentially, what President Goodluck Jonathan did was to take N2bn each from the Ecological Fund and gave to some PDP states. Any PDP state that was not his friend, like Kano and Kwara, didn’t get; and all the other opposition parties, like no ACN state got anything, no ANPP state got anything.”

He said the committee concluded that those excluded from the largesse be given N2bn each.

The governor disclosed that the fund currently has a balance of N33.6bn.

He added that there was a presidential directive that the fund must maintain a balance of N20bn in case of any emergency like natural disaster requiring intervention.

El-Rufai said the committee recommended partial payments to the states since the spare N13bn would not go round 19 states.

He added, “It was given to favoured states based on no criteria or any request based on emergency. It was just a handout to favoured states and other states that were not so favoured were discriminated against.

“My state got because my state was governed by the PDP and was very friendly with Jonathan. In my state, the amount was used to do some ecological projects but in some states, the money simply vanished.

“But in my state, it did not vanish. The projects were done. We are looking into those projects because the prices did not look right, the quality in one or two cases is not the best but some projects were done.

“So we are saying in fairness, the other states that did not get this N2bn on discretionary basis should get. This is why President Buhari is here to right the wrongs of the past.”