Nigeria Content Online

Adams Oshiomhole
the Edo state governor, yesterday said the management of the federation
accounts by the Federal Government is not only fraught with abuses, but
lacks transparency and consistency.

Mr. Oshiomole spoke
during a visit on Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, the Central Bank governor, and
called for a radical review of the revenue allocation formula in favour
of the other tiers of government to give them more impetus for
grassroots development. Commending Mr. Sanusi for the uncommon courage
he demonstrated in embarking upon the reform of the banking sector last
year, he said the decision has not only helped deepen the understanding
of the nation’s financial sector and unravel the malaise of corruption,
but also engendered confidence in investors. “The intervention has
helped people access credits for investment far more easily than
before,” he said, adding that the Edo state government is a prime
beneficiary of the reform, as it has been able to access facilities at
less than 13 per cent to pursue its development agenda.

Weak constituency projects

He lampooned
constituency projects conducted by federal legislators saying that no
one is impressed with the quality of infrastructure being developed at
the grassroots. “When I go round and I see the so-called constituency
projects, like primary schools and secondary classrooms and boreholes
that are of very poor quality and standard it does not matter whether
it is by a National Assembly member or anybody. In an ideal environment
those things can be handled better by even local authority,” he said.
“While that is going on, the Federal Government is unable to fund
strategic institutions like the Police Force, resulting in state
government having to undertake the extra burden of funding efforts to
support in the provision of equipment and communication gadgets to
enable them function effectively. The question must be asked: Where is
the federal budget for the Police?”

“If the Federal
Government has put emphasis on such core areas as security and
diplomacy, it does not need 53 percent of the Federal allocation that
it currently has. There is a case for a radical review of the revenue
formula so that more money could be put into national development. The
whole essence of our federal system is that whereas the Federal
Government is at the head, the states are supposed to be real agents of
development, whether in the area of agriculture, primary basic
education and other millennium development challenges,” he added.

Mr.Sanusi thanked the governor for identifying with the reform
programme of his administration, saying he is not bothered by the
criticisms and attacks, as his management team was aware that the
entrenched vested interests that were benefiting from the status quo
would react to frustrate it. “The reason this country has not made much
progress in other sectors, such as the power reform and the
deregulation of the distribution of petroleum products, is that people
are unable to confront change. The issues in the banking sector are
those that are symptomatic of what Nigeria as a country needs to deal
with to allow investment come in.”