The Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Douye Diri has faulted the constitutional arrangement which gives surface rights to the owners of land and deprive him of the resources found underneath the same land.
Diri said that the constitution that says that the land belongs to the people while the resources underneath it belong to the Federal Government is unjust and unfair.
The Bayelsa Governor made the observation while granting an interview at the Channels Television Breakfast Programme, the Sun Rise Daily, on Thursday as part of the Programme for his two years anniversary celebration.
The Governor said that it is unjust for Bayelsa and indeed the states of the Niger Delta to produce the oil revenue for this country only to be given a paltry federal allocation from the federation account.
Senator Diri described the claim by an organization which categorized Bayelsa as insolvent as a provocation to the people of the state and indeed the Niger Delta.
He argued that it was wrong and insensitive to describe Bayelsa and indeed the states of the Niger Delta which produce the resources that are shared in the name of federal allocation to all states of the federation, as insolvent.
Diri who called for a review of the constitution also advocated a restructured Nigerian federation where states would have control over their resources and pay taxes to the Federal Government.
He said that the nation is headed in the direction of underdevelopment and indeed a failed state because there is so much wrong with it
He said, “Now the question you ask yourself is, is that fair, is that just. That what is generated here as income comes back to Bayelsa State as Federal Allocation; May be truly a paltry federal allocation. And these are the issues that we have been talking about. That you cannot have a whole chunk of money generated from our land and take it to the federal and share to states, and in the end you now say Bayelsa State is insolvent.
That is why we are talking about restructuring, that is why we are talking about amending our country’s constitution.
“The constitution that says the land’s surface rights belong to the people and what is underneath belongs to Federal Government has not justice in it. And anybody who bandies these figures annoy the people of Bayelsa State, and indeed the people of the Niger Delta.
“For us, we need to rework our constitution, we need to restructure our country in a way that we can approximate our own resources here and pay taxes to federal government. And nobody will be talking about Bayelsa State being insolvent.
“It is because of the unitary system in the name of the Federal Government that we have in Nigeria that the resources of these states are expropriated and somebody will sit down and come with figures and say a state like Bayelsa is insolvent. And like I said, the last time, if Bayelsa is insolvent, then Nigeria is insolvent.
“From where you get all your resources and the resources are not ploughed back here and you say the state is insolvent? My point here is that there is so much wrong with our country and that is why we are moving in a circle òf undevelopment, of continuous injustice, inequities, and almost being a failed state.”
Diri dismissed the argument being put forward in some quarters to deprive the Niger Delta people of their resources that cocoa money or Federal Government funds were used to develop the oil sector, saying the multinational oil companies came with capital for oil exploitation and exploration.
Speaking on his second year anniversary, Governor Diri said that his immediate plan was to continue with virtually all the projects and most of the good policies of the immediate past government of Senator Henry Seriake Dickson, some of which were completed.
He added that the government also initiated and completed fresh projects in addition to ones he inherited from the immediate past government.