"If the Federal government says it has recovered money from the fight against corruption, then the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria makes it mandatory that all monies generated by the Federal Government, should go into the Consolidated Revenue Account and such monies should be shared.
"So, I am making this as a personal opinion that, monies recovered from the fight against corruption should actually be shared by the Federal Government for the benefits of the entire States in the country".
This was part of the proclamations made by the Speaker, Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, Rt Hon (Barr.) Onofiok Luke, on Tuesday, before he declared open a public hearing on "a bill to make provision for the administration and collection of revenue due to the government councils in Akwa Ibom State and to establish the relevant administrative structures and other matters connected therewith".
The public hearing which was organised by the House Committee on Appropriations and Finance, headed by the member representing Esit Eket/ Ibeno State Constituency, Hon Usoro Akpanusoh, had representatives from the Executive Arm of Government, the Judiciary, the media, Civil Liberties Organisations, Human Rights Defenders, the organised labour unions, the traditional institution, clergymen as well as other concerned citizens.
The Speaker who was flanked by his Deputy; Hon (Mrs) Felicia Bassey, Leader of the House; Rt Hon Udo Kierian Akpan, Chief Whip; Hon Emmanuel Ekpenyong (Iraq), amongst other lawmakers, also made a case to the Federal Government, to diversify its economic dependence from oil to the non-oil sectors.
The Rt. Hon. Luke noted that the dwindling oil revenue provides the Nation a painful but indispensable opportunity to look inwards in a bid to trigger economy growth.
Barrister Luke, who extolled the State Governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel, for taking proactive steps towards structuring the Akwa Ibom economy for an increase in Internally Generated Revenue, stressed that, “as a Peoples’ Assembly, we feel obliged to support the Governor’s efforts in all ways possible to ensure that government collects revenue due to it as well as expend what is generated in a way that will be of benefit to Akwa Ibom people”.
Meanwhile, the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly has a tradition of holding public hearing on any bill under its deliberation, to allow the stakeholders have their input before such bill is passed into law.
On the significance of such hearings, the Speaker, Barrister Onofiok Luke, hinted, that the House under his watch believes that in an ideal society, every law should be people-oriented, since governance is about people, the reason the 6th Assembly in Akwa Ibom is tagged, “The Peoples’ Assembly”. By Henshaw NYONG, Uyo.
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