Ayade Charges FG to Liberalize Solid Mineral Sector

Cross River State Governor, Prof Ben Ayade has call on the Federal government to salvage the nation from the current recession by liberalizing the solid mineral sector for quicker economic recovery.

Ayade gave the charge yesterday when he received a delegation from the Revenue Mobilization, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) led by the Commissioner representing the state, Mrs. Martina Odom on a courtesy visit to Government House, Calabar.

The governor who argued that the federal government has no business controlling the solid minerals, stressed the need for a more flexible exploration policy to allow the people derive the needed benefit from their God’s endowment in the area.

In his words: “This is the time that the Federal Government must liberalize and make it much easier for states to invest in solid minerals investigation and invest in hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation. Until you liberalize, open the sector and make that gateway easier, it becomes impossible to grow the sector.”

Continuing, he maintained that “Unfortunately, it is a torture to have the opportunity to exploit our resources and therefore we remain a people with cap in hand, not to talk of investing in solid minerals.”

Ayade also regretted that “unfortunately, by the virtue of the law which makes it an exclusive thing, the federal government has held the monopoly over the solid minerals exploitation, making it very impossible for states to focus in the sector.”

He, however, raised the hope that “the new development where federal government is gradually easing off its stronghold on mining and the mining lease has made it possible for states to be able to reinvigorate and become more intense in terms of investment in solid minerals,” saying it was the right step in the right direction.

According to the governor, “We are particularly grateful that Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission is gradually increasingly focusing on solid minerals inputs in the computation of how you do the re-equalization of revenue distribution in the Federal Government.”

While urging the commission to be alive to its responsibilities, he said: “I have also advised at this point in time that the RMFAC has the singular responsibility of recalibrating the way and manner the federal structure distributes money. It is not sufficient to rely on the existing data that you are deploying. Apart from the issue of reliability, acceptability, it also does not show the sensitivity to the specific requirements, space and challenges of the people.”

The governor call on the Federal government through the commission to review its mode of wealth sharing and stressed the need for them to step up from just wealth distribution to helping in its creation.

Ayade who said Cross River State has been shortchanged due to the loss of oil wells occasioned by the ceding of Bakassi peninsula, decried the lengthy processes involved in the exploration of solid minerals by states and called on the federal government to relax its stronghold on the sector.

He lamented that RMAFC has been operating below the statutory powers in its enabling act, and therefore, creating a lacuna in the generation of wealth in the country.

He urged the commission to review the policy framework currently used in wealth redistribution so as to include several other factors.

“Let me Therefore appeal that it is the responsibility of the RMFAC to form time to time, make adjustments to the revenue formula to accommodate the challenges of a people. Example, the people of Cross River State have been denied access to the Crude Oil production that we still know that the Environmental Impact is wholly borne by Cross River State, yet we are denied the luxury of computing it as part of Cross River State derivative.

“We also have the challenges where some wells that we do know fall within Cross River State are classified as not belonging to the state. Consequently also, we have had the Bakassi Peninsula which was part of what gave us the access to those oil wells. Having lost such locations without the fault of the state in a manner that is inappropriate, it is unacceptable without following up with corresponding recognition from the federal government. I expect that the kind of injury to the people and their dignity, I should call for part of what will rejig the calculus that you use in your computation. We believe that the people of Cross River State have had an unfair denial of what is rightfully theirs” Ayade said.

Earlier, leader of the delegation and Commissioner representing Cross River State at RMAFC, Mrs Martina Odom, noted that the federal government was exploring other viable sector with particular interest in the mining sector to diversify its economy and boost its earning.

Odom disclosed that the team was in the state to conduct a holistic audit of the activities of major operators in the mining sector with a view to ascertaining all mining companies licensed to operate including those at the local government level.

She maintained that the team’s scope of work will also cover verification and ascertaining the number of mining leases issued to operator as well as check the quantum of royalty and other taxes paid by them.

Mrs Odom said the exercise will also take note of artisan and informal miners operating in the state with a view to bringing taxable operators into the tax net to boost Internally Generated Revenue for distribution.

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Posted by admin on Nov 10 2016. Filed under Ben Ayade Desk. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry