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The
Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has
constituted a committee to review petitions on the presidential
concession granted Bayelsa State last year to enable it earn derivation
revenue from nine oil wells.

The
Commission is constitutionally empowered to determine the revenue
allocation formula, including indices for the disbursement to all tiers
of government.

Though
the committee, constituted late last week during the emergency session
of the Commission in Abuja, is yet to be inaugurated, its terms of
reference might include findings on the legality of the concession in
line with the constitutional provisions on derivation revenue earnings
by oil producing states.

Though
a senior official of the Commission, who pleaded anonymity, said
yesterday that it would be preemptive to suggest the outcome of the
committee’s findings and recommendations, it was, however, gathered
that Bayelsa State may be asked to make some refunds if found that
about N20billion excess revenue earned so far was without any
constitutional basis.

“The
issue has to be followed constitutionally,” the source said.
“Derivation revenue is paid to oil producing states on the strength of
the relevant provisions of the constitution. If in the course of the
committee’s work, it is found that Bayelsa State earned revenues which
the Constitution did not provide for, the government would be asked to
make some refunds. But, it would be preemptive to say exactly what
would happen now, particularly as the committee was inaugurated only
last week on the eve of the last day of last year,” the senior official
said.

He,
however, disclosed that the meeting presided over by its new Chairman,
Elias Mbam, had agreed that further disbursement of revenue on the
principles of the concession be suspended to afford the committee the
opportunity to complete its work and make appropriate recommendations
to the Commission.

Controversial concession

The
concession, which has already lifted Bayelsa State to become the
highest derivation revenue earner among the oil producing states, was
sequel to a request by Governor Timipre Sylva for approval for the
attribution of nine oil fields to the state to assuage negative impact
of the delineation of maritime boundaries of littoral states by the
National Boundary Commission (NBC) in the wake of the promulgation of
the Offshore/Onshore Dichotomy Abrogation Act 2004.

The
delineation was to establish the maritime boundaries of littoral states
located beyond the 200-metre isobaths, to produce data for the
attribution of 13 percent derivation to states.

Prior
to the controversial concession, allocation of derivation revenue was
based on the volume of oil production figures attributable to each oil
producing state, with Akwa Ibom topping, followed by Rivers, and Delta
States, while Bayelsa brought the rear.

However,
with the revised 13 percent derivation indices, payment of derivation
since last July based on the concession raised Bayelsa State’s total
oil production to about 15,995,773 barrels, making it the highest
derivation revenue earner ahead of Rivers (13,317,840 barrels), Akwa
Ibom (12,796,954 barrels) and Delta (11,163,493 barrels).

At
the end of last Friday’s controversial disbursement of $1billion (about
N150billion) end-of-year bonanza from the Excess Crude Account by the
Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) shared by the three
tiers of government, Bayelsa State went home with the highest
allocation of $40million among the nine oil producing states.

Accordingly,
Akwa Ibom was allocated $30million; Rivers, $28million; Delta,
$21million; Ondo, $4million; Abia, $1.3million; Imo $1.26million; Edo
$1.2million and Cross River, $1million.