April 1, (THEWILL)- Governor Nasir Idris of Kebbi State has called for a review of the sharing formula of federal allocations to meet the democratic needs of citizens.
The governor who said this in an interview with journalists at the weekend in Abuja, said the revenue sharing formula was lopsided in favour of the federal government to the detriments of the states.
He said the three arms of government have duties to people that elected them, adding that one arm should not therefore take a proportion that is disadvantaged to the rest.
He said, “A situation where the federal government takes 55 per cent of the total share of the revenue was to say the least unfair. We must look at the formula in order to meet our campaign promises to our citizens. When you look at it, the states and local governments are the closes to the people and most of the challenges faced directly by citizens are handled by the state and local government.
Revenue among the three arms of government sis shared in accordance with the vertical formula, as determined by the Revenue Mobilsation Allocation and Fiscal Commission and approved by the National Assembly.
The formula allocates 52.68 per cent, 26.72 per cent, and 20 per cent to the Federal, State and Local Government, respectively.
Governor Idris said, “It is the at the state where you will find farmers, the artisans, the poorest of the poor and it is our responsibility as governors to make life meaningful and worth living for them. So, I believe that the federal government has fewer responsibility in terms of direct interaction with Nigerians. Governors and local government chairmen deal directly with the people and it is a huge burden on them. The revenues should be shared in such a way that state and local governments that often have direct interactions with the Nigerian people should collect higher percentage to meet their yearnings and aspirations.”
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Amos Esele is the Acting Editor of THEWILL Newspaper. He has over two decades of experience on the job.
