Aare Onakakanfo of Yoruba land, Iba Gani Adams, on Sunday, said the intention of President Muhammadu Buhari to re-present the controversial Inland Waterways Bill to the National Assembly is not in the national interest, insisting that the move had also exposed the Federal Government’s primordial interests over national interest.
Adams gave this stand in a statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Mr Kehinde Aderemi, expressing disappointment at the way the Federal Government was dragging sensitive issues like the Inland Waterways Bill with the state governments.
The Yoruba generalissimo posited that Buhari’s attempt to use the National Assembly as tools to fulfil his personal agenda was against the principle of Federalism and does not reflect the values of separation of powers, warning that the states would be left with nothing to survive should the Federal Government actually succeeds in controlling the waterways in the country.
“If the Federal Government actually succeeds in controlling the waterways, then the states are left with nothing to survive.
“For instance, Osun Osogbo remains one of the tourism destinations and revenue generation resources for the Osun State. Many like that are spread all over the country. This cruel and selfish agenda must not fly because it is against the general principle of Federalism,” he said.
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“The FG couldn’t manage over 300 agencies and parastatals belonging to it, yet it is trying to strangle the states from their natural resources and endowments. The intention of the FG is to control all the waters and their surrounding banks in all parts of Nigeria.
“This is fraught with tension and suspicion because it would give the Federal Government the power to control the nation’s rivers (especially those that pass through more than one state).
“It is purely a direct assault on the principle of Federalism. The idea of centralizing all the resources, both human and natural resources in the hands of the Federal Government is killing and could lead to avoidable crisis between the Federal and the state governments,” he added.
Iba Adams recalled the controversial Waterways Bills was first presented to the National Assembly during Dr Olusola Saraki’s tenure as Senate president and was rejected by the Upper Chamber, urging members of the present National Assembly to be wary of falling into the trap set by the Federal Government.
He urged them not to turn themselves to rubber-stamp legislators, saying they are lawmakers “and should also remember that they will always go back to their various constituencies to give account of their stewardship as representatives of the people.”
“So, whatever they do now has a place in history and it may also affect their political careers, either positively or negatively. So, I urge all members of the National Assembly to ignore the obnoxious Water ways bills totally in the national interest.
“Passing the controversial Inland Waterways Bill will translate to a serious setback because it will surely affect the spirit of Federalism that Nigeria subscribes to as a nation,” Adams said.
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