The South-South Governors Forum (SSGF) has described President Bola Tinubu’s Executive Order mandating the direct remittance of all oil and gas revenues to the Federation Account as a welcome development.
The Chairman of the Forum and Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Douye Diri, in a statement issued on Wednesday, said the region’s governors view the decision as a paradigm shift toward the restoration of constitutional integrity in Nigeria’s petroleum sector.
The Forum noted that the Executive Order is comprehensive, self-explanatory and heartwarming, adding that it rekindles hope that after years of opaque and complex deduction structures, the federal, state and local governments will begin to receive their rightful entitlements from the Federation Account.
Part of the statement reads: “The South-South region particularly welcomes the key provisions of the Executive Order, which will eliminate opaque deductions and effectively strip the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) of the nebulous 30 per cent Frontier Exploration Fund, which often led to large idle cash balances.
“Mandating all operators and contractors under Production Sharing Contracts to remit Royalty Oil, Tax Oil and Profit Oil directly to the Federation Account will significantly plug revenue leakages.
“This decision is a positive step towards fiscal justice for sub-nationals, particularly the oil-producing states, as it will potentially increase available funds for critical infrastructure, healthcare, education and other sectors across the three tiers of government.”
The Forum also expressed delight at President Tinubu’s move to undertake a comprehensive review of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), describing it as an affirmation that he is a leader who listens and places the interest of the people above other considerations.
It noted that states in the region, particularly Bayelsa, had consistently advocated for a review of the PIA, describing the extant Act as a ticking time bomb.
“The PIA, as currently designed, is a time bomb because the Federal Government cut off states and local government councils to deal directly with communities. It is the Forum’s submission that the percentage due to oil communities, which was reduced from 10 per cent as proposed by the majority of states in the region to three per cent, should be revisited and reviewed.
“We also urge the Federal Government to immediately review the aspect where states and local governments were excluded from administering what is due to the communities. States and councils are closer to the communities, and it was wrong to exclude them from the administration of these funds. The current Act is a recipe for crisis, and we urge Mr. President to review it.
0 Comments