Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, has directed Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, to immediately release N1.6 billion for 16 states ravaged by floods across the country.

This was revealed on Wednesday by spokesperson to President Muhammadu Buhari, Femi Adesina, while briefing reporters at the end of the meeting of Federal Executive Council, FEC.

Mr. Adesina said the money is to help cushion the effects of the disaster on residents of the states.

He also said the fund “would be taken from the Federal Government’s Ecological Account in the Central Bank of Nigeria”.

He said Minister of Finance had been directed to release the money directly to the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, for onward distribution to the affected states.

The benefitting states are Ekiti, Osun, Akwa Ibom, Kebbi, Niger, Kwara, Ebonyi, Enugu, Abia, Oyo, Lagos, Plateau, Sokoto, Edo and Bayelsa.

In Niger State, at least two people died from the recent floods, while several parts of the Lagos Island including Lekki and Victoria Island were unpassable last Saturday due to the flood in the state.

On Tuesday, the Senate asked the federal government to release money to Niger State to cushion the effect of the flood there.

PT