Bill on state control of VAT answer to resource control agitations – CHURAC

The bill being reportedly sponsored by members of the House of Representatives, Hon. Hassan Usman Sokodabo and Hon. John Dyegh to alter Item 39, Part 1 of the Second Schedule to the 1999 Constitution (as amended) is the sure path to fiscal federalism.

This is the submission of the
Chairman, Board of Trustees,
Centre for Human Rights and Anti-Corruption Crusade (CHURAC), Cleric Alaowei, Esq., in a chat with our correspondent on Sunday in Warri, Delta State.

He, said the bill, which is seeking to move the items set out in Item 39 Part 1 of the Second Schedule to the Constitution from the Exclusive List into the Concurrent List, would validate the resource control struggle and would stabilize the polity by engendering competitive economy.

“The Bill if passes into law will mean that States Government shall manage their resources, mines and minerals, including oil fields, oil mining, Value Added Tax(VAT), geological surveys as well as natural gas.

“Also, 50 per cent of the total revenue accruable from the minerals shall be retained by the state where the minerals are derived; 30 per cent shall be credited to the Distributable Pool Account, while the remaining 20 per cent shall be credited to the Federation Account,” he noted.

Giving more insight into the benefits of the bill, Alaowei affirmed that “the Bill, in our thinking, is retaining the derivation principles provided by the 1960 and 1963 Constitutions respectively.

“This is the gateway to fiscal restructuring of the country. The nation will, in no doubt, experience speedy developments of an unimaginable proportion if the said bill is passed into law.

“We commend the National Assembly for taking this bold step to solve the age-long revenue crisis in the country. The National Assembly should not throw away this very important Bill.

“Of all the ongoing amendments to the 1999 Constitution, this Resource Control Bill is the most important that can sustain the unity of the country till eternity.”

He appealed to sponsors of the bill, may the National Assembly, to “amend 44(3) of the Principal Act to make it in sync with the items sought to be altered in the Constitution,” urging all Nigerians to queue behind the National Assembly to pass the bill.

He also appealed to the National Assembly to increase the host communities funds in the Petroleum Industry Act from 3 per cent to 10 per cent in the proposed amendment to the Principal Act.