Northern, Southern delegates agree on resource control

Clement Idoko - Abuja
Thursday, May 1, 2014

AFTER days of stalemate, the northern and southern delegates on the power devolution committee of the

ongoing national conference in Abuja, on Wednesday, resolved the logjam on the issue of resource control, with the recommendation that states where minerals are domiciled shall now be involved in their development and exploration.

Co-chairman of the committee and former governor of Akwa Ibom State, Chief Victor Attah, who briefed newsmen after the long hours of meeting on Wednesday, said members unanimously resolved that the contentious item 39 be retained in the exclusive legislative list, but with proviso for states' involvement.

The delegates also prescribed the setting aside of a special grant by the Federal Government for development of mineral deposits in all the states.

The debate on the resource control, as contained in 1999 Constitution, had almost frustrated the work of the committee on devolution of power, because of the acrimony it created between the North and South.

While delegates from the North wanted the status quo maintained as contained in the current constitution, delegates from the South believed the item could still remain in the exclusive legislative list, but with some modifications.

Part of the modifications, according to them, was to enable the state governments to have some level of involvements when legislations regarding mining of mineral resources deposited in their areas were being drafted.

After deliberation of Wednesday, which lasted for about three hours, the committee members reached a consensus on the controversial matter.

Former Deputy Senate President and delegate at the conference, Senator Ibrahim Mantu, told the Nigerian Tribune that consensus was reached after days of rigorous debate, adding that the decision was arrived at in the interest of the nation.

"We came back this morning (yesterday) to look at the issues once and for all, with the national interest in mind. We have to thank God for what He has done. Everybody came back this morning to contribute in a patriotic manner," he said.

However, an elder statesman, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, who spoke with newsmen after the Wednesday's session, said the logjam had been amicably resolved by the delegates.

According to him, the exploration of minerals would no longer be an exclusive preserve of the Federal Government and that the committee had recommended the involvement of states where the minerals were domiciled.

Political restructuring committee recommends modified presidential system

The committee on political restructuring and forms of government in confab, on Wednesday, recommended modified presidential system of government for the country.

The committee has also recommended a unicameral legislature for the country.

The committee, at its sitting late Wednesday, recommended that "there shall be unicameral legislature, whose members shall be full time. There shall be proportional representation to guarantee minorities and special interest."

This followed extensive debate on the recommendations of an 11-member sub-committee chaired by Air Vice Marshal Mohammed Mukhtar.

The sub-committee said there was the need to evolve a novel system of government that would be beneficial to Nigerians, adding that this became apparent, considering the results of past and extant system the country had experienced and still going through.

After two adjournments, the committee, co-chaired by General Ike Nwachukwu and Honourable Mohammed Kumaila, agreed and recommended that there shall be a president that had one constituency, which is Nigeria.

Affect the second adjournment, 15 members sat and adopted the recommendations.

NLC, TUC stage protest

Meanwhile, the leadership of labour union represented at the national conference, including Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), among others, on Wednesday, led a protest delegation of the unions to the committee to kick against a recommendation to move labour matters from the exclusive legislative list to the concurrent legislative list.

Addressing the committee, President of the NLC, Comrade Abdulwaheed Omar, said the decision went against the interest of Nigerian workers.

He pleaded with the committee to reconsider its decision on the labour issue and revert it to the exclusive legislative list, noting that "those who are behind this are doing it for their own narrow interests."

Confab gets 6-wk extension

The Federal Government has extended the work of the ongoing national conference in Abuja by six weeks.

Nigerian Tribune gathered that this followed complaints by some delegates, especially principal officials of the committees, that the time allocated for committee work was short for thorough job.

By this extension, the conference would now end on July 31, instead of the earlier June 19 it was programmed to last.

According to the work plan obtained by the Nigerian Tribune on Wednesday, it had been devoted to consideration of draft report of the conference, while July 28 to 31 would be for production and signing of the final report.

No official reason was given for the extension of the conference, but some delegates hinted that "we still have a lot of areas uncovered."