Ondo State Governor, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN, CON has said devolution of power was the practicable ways to get out of the current doldrums, noting that it is wrong for the federal government to continue to determine renumeration of the state governments officials nationwide.
The Governor made his position known at the opening of the One-day Zonal Public Hearing on the Review of the 2008 Remuneration Package for Political, Public and Judicial Office Holders in Nigeria organized by the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission ( RMAFC ), held at Adegbemile Hall, Akure on Wednesday.
The exercise took place simultaneously in all the Geo-political zones of the Country.
Akeredolu who was represented at the event by his Deputy, Hon Lucky Aiyedatiwa said, component units making up the Country has been passing through many challenges.
“The appropriation of the source of wealth of various States by agencies of the Federal Government is the fundamental reason for retardation”.
According to him, “the Country continue to pretend that all is well, when it is dithering on the brink of collapse” .
Continued, the Governor said, “the system which allows a very strong central government and weak dependencies is not capable of development” .
Canvassing for power devolution for competitive development, Governor Akeredolu declared that, “power must devolve to the federating units for the Country to lay claims to being a federal State” .
“Let every State determine the salaries and allowances of it’s officials, let the State control their resources and pay tax to the center” , he said.
Akeredolu maintained that “As we march towards nationhood as a people of manifest fortunate destiny, we must fashion practicable ways to get out of the current doldrums.”
“Most Nigerians participating in this public hearing will conclude, hastily, that its purpose is self-serving and highly insensitive to the plight of the ordinary people.
“The mere knowledge that humongous budgetary allocations are appropriated as recurrent expenditure in a country, struggling with issues of development, is perennially unsettling. A negligible fraction engaged to serve the populace gobbles a disproportionate part of the commonwealth.
“Ordinary Nigerians are, justifiably, vehement on the need to tinker with the current structure to allow real creation of wealth rather than concentrate all attention on how to share it. The current practice of fixing salaries and allowances of public officials to reflect uniformity in a polity, which prides itself as federal, appears odd.
“The logic of mopping up revenues accruable to states and local governments into a general pool for the purpose of sharing, in accordance with some opaque formulas, is anachronistic and retrogressive in a country with a fast-growing heterogenous population. It is not sufficient for this Commission to regulate the salaries of public officials.
“The oil boom of the early 70s encouraged redundancy, progressively. The discovery of oil, the reason for the remarkable progress of other countries, has thus become a huge curse on the land. Only those who benefit from this current dysfunction will want it to continue.
“The country continues to pretend that all is well when it is dithering on the brink of collapse. All patriots must be resolute in challenging the present structural defects which stifle growth.
“The system which allows a very strong central government and weak dependencies is not capable of development. It will be much more profitable for the Federal Government to dissipate less energy in its pursuit of the misnomer touted as local government autonomy.
“Power must devolve to the federating units for the country to lay claims to being a federal State.
“Let every State determine the salaries and allowances of its officials. Let the states control their resources and pay tax to the centre,” Akeredolu said.
In his welcome address at the event, the Chairman of RMAFC, Alhaji Muhammed Bello Shehu represented by Ondo State commissioner at RMAFC, Chief Tokunbo Ajasin, acknowledged the support of Ondo State Governor for hosting the event .
“The commission is indeed grateful for your kind gestures”, he said.
“The aim of the review exercise is to achieve an all-inclusive exercise that will capture all political, public and Judicial Office holders at all levels in the Country who were hitherto not captured” , he said.
Representatives of Ogun, Oyo, Ekiti, Osun, Lagos and Ondo State government were at the public hearing.
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