The chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi, has said that although the federal government has the right to institute the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF), states should be given the latitude to access their own funds and contribute their quota to the federal government.
Amaechi stated this yesterday in Port Harcourt during a colloquium to commemorate the fourth anniversary of the Supreme Court judgment that ushered him into office on October 25, 2007.
The NGF chairman’s statement is coming in the wake of the suit instituted by the 36 state governors against the federal government on the SWF where they are asking the Supreme Court to restrain the federal government from making any further withdrawal from the account hitherto known as the “Excess Crude Account”.
He said: ”The conduct of the Government of the Federation and her officials is a violation of the principle of rule of law and breach of the independence of the judiciary and constitutes a violation of the principle of rule of law handed down by the Supreme Court.
“The rule of law eliminates completely the rule of man. Governors agree that the federal government should save but the law has to be respected. What the federal government has done is merely kidnapping of our money.”
The governor added that the SWF, like all things in the country, must fall within the ambit of the law, saying: “Section 80 of the 1999 Constitution was talking about consolidated revenue. Federal government should give states their money.”
He said the federal government was being economical with the truth in its bid to liberalise the downstream sector, arguing that it has spent N1.264 trillion, which is more than the N264 billion that? was appropriated to it by the lawmakers in this year’s budget.
Amaechi pointed out that beyond the argument of oil subsidy is also the argument about corruption which takes place at the top and trickle down to permeate the entire society.
Delivering a paper with the title ‘Jurisprudence, democracy and the rule of law’ renowned constitutional lawyer, Prof Itse Sagay, applauded the Supreme Court judgement that ushered in Amaechi as governor as signalling the supremacy of the rule of law.
Sagay enumerated the guiding principles of the judgement as ushering in of? a new operational philosophy of? law, nourishing of? the democratic culture and making courts shy away from the constraints of technicality.
Meanwhile, as the planned removal of fuel subsidy announced by the federal government continues to generate reactions from Nigerians across the country, the northern socio-cultural group, Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), yesterday advised the federal government to reconsider its position and face the business of putting the four refineries to work.
In an exclusive message made available to LEADERSHIP, the ACF said “it would be better to put our refineries to work in order to reduce the high cost of importation that brings about the costly subsidies”.
ACF stated, in a message circulated by its spokesperson, Anthony Sani, that, instead of canvassing the removal of fuel subsidy in the country, the reports of the probe by the National Assembly should be allowed to inform any decision by the government on the petroleum subsidies.
According to the ACF, spirited efforts should be made “to make the four refineries functional. Government should also consider and act on the conditions given by those companies with licences to start private refineries.
The conditions do not seem to have anything to do with petroleum subsidies”.
“ACF believed that it would be better to put our refineries to work in order to reduce the high cost of importation that brings about the costly subsidies.”
“And now that? the? NASS is probing the alleged sharp practices in the management of petroleum subsidies in order to establish the true position, ACF is of the view that the reports of the probe by the National Assembly should be allowed to inform any decision by the government on the petroleum subsidies,” the message read.