By EMMANUEL AZIKEN

WITH an intimidating physical frame and a resonating baritone voice it was not difficult for Senator Isa Oyofo to command an intimidating presence in the Senate between 1999 and 2007. The mystique around him would only have deepened with his ascension in that period to the Spiritual Leadership of the Grail Message sect in Nigeria.

Given his spiritual inclination it was remarkable that Senator Oyofo in a rare press outing last week brought a pious dimension to the debate on the creation of more states in the country. “It is clear that states have to be viable. A situation where a state is created to rely on the revenue share from the Federal Government; and is not viable when deeply considered (is) a sin.

It is a sin because it inhibits the ability of citizens to develop their potentials which lie in the talents God bestowed on each of us,” the former Senator from Edo North said.

While I would not in any way tend towards Senator Oyofo’s spiritual dictates in Grail Land, I am not unaware of the reasons that may have prompted his classification of the sinfulness in the creation of more states.

Senator Oyofo’s intervention followed disclosures that as many as 45 demands for new states are now presently being considered by the National Assembly.

Though Senator Oyofo did not come down from his spiritual heights to define what a sin is, it is taken for granted that sin is an infringement of the law. In presenting his argument against the creation of more states, Senator Oyofo noted the fact that many of the present states in the country are unviable.

It is this critical point that many of the present states are unviable that has now thrown up the agitation for the review of the revenue formula by many state governors.

The chairman of the Northern Governors Forum, Dr. Babangida Aliyu of Niger State, undoubtedly one of the most cosmopolitan governors in the country, has been leading the charge. Speaking at the inauguration of the Advisory Council to the Ahmadu Bello Memorial Foundation in Kaduna last week, Dr. Aliyu frowned at what he described as the lopsided revenue formula that allowed oil producing states to get more money than northern states.

As if he had not been heard well, Dr. Aliyu followed up on his campaign last Monday in Lagos at a public lecture where he demanded for an equal sharing of the proceeds from oil among the states of the federation.

“Nigerians in the North Eastern part of this country, over 2000 kilometres from the oil producing areas, should have equitable stake in the oil resources of this nation, since the resources belong to the federation of Nigeria, in the same manner that the resources from the agriculture sector were used by past administrations for the development of critical infrastructure in many parts of the country including the oil exploration.”

Derivation principle
Dr. Aliyu’s suggestion for the elimination of the derivation principle in the allocation of resources is undoubtedly provoking.  In suggesting that the resources of the north were used to exploit oil he, however, overlooked the fact that 50 per cent of whatever was in that era was channeled to the regions.  If derivation was based on 50% in that period why would the governor not support the application of the same derivation principle to the oil producing states?

If Governor Aliyu should argue for a review of the revenue formula to the intent of reducing the present regime that allows more than 50% of federally collectible revenue to the federal government it would be an entirely different point. Indeed, many including this writer are in support of scrapping states including some oil producing states that are not able to meet their basic needs.

A state that is unable to meet its basic needs is living in sin and should be appropriately sanctioned with dissolution.
In canvassing for the scrapping of the derivation principle, Dr. Aliyu otherwise referred to as the Chief Servant of Niger State by his admirers has indirectly told the people of the oil producing states that he does not make any pretense to being a servant when the collective interest of Nigeria is at stake.

Given suggestions of a possible presidential run by the second term governor, the people of the Niger Delta would not but regard him as Lord Aliyu!