New mining policy: What are govs waiting for?

WITH the decision of the Federal Government to allow states to mine the natural resources in their domains, I think this is a great opportunity for the states to become financially buoyant. Unfortunately, since the law was made, I am yet to hear of any state tapping into it to generate funds. It seems our governors are comfortable seeking for bailout from the Federal Government.

A state governor should be a creative person in whose hands the development and growth of the state lies. When we have governors who are brilliant, and are good human resources managers, it won’t take time before their states become prosperous, no matter what they are getting from the Federation Account.

What most governors do today is just to wait for the allocation from the Federal Government and then disburse it. Anybody can do this as far as I am concerned; however, a governor who sees the allocation from the Federal Government as extra, but uses his brain to generate enough revenue locally is the person we need in power. It is, therefore, not late for states to come up with policies in order to generate huge revenue from the resources in their domains. The first thing for the governors to do is to draw up a list of resources in their localities. They can then look at those who need these resources locally and internationally. They can even sign joint ventures with established foreign companies for their projects. With this, there should be no reason for states to be begging the Federal Government for bailout everyday.

• Vincent Ekpe,

Woji, Port Harcourt.