…our economy has lost its productive capacity
..we are practicing “feeding bottle federalism”
By Ike Uchechukwu
Former Senate Leader, Sen. Victor Ndoma Egba ,SAN has asserted that Nigeria’s Federal structure as it stands was no longer workable as the centre has become overburdened coupled with our economy losing productive capacity.
Ndoma-Egba who made the assertion in a telephone interview with Vanguard stressed that our situation as a country now, can be likened to a car whose engine has knocked and the owner was trying to fix brand new tyres in the car as a means of getting it to work .
He further stated that States as federating units have become absolutely dependent on federal allocation than their own internally generated revenue.
His words :” Our situation now can be likened to a car whose engine has knocked and the owner is trying to fix brand new tyres in the car as a means of getting it to work.
“The so called federal structure we have is no longer workable. The center is overburdened, it has become so unwieldy that more than seventy percent of the federal expenditure goes to recurrent expenditure while less than thirty percent is left for capital .
“Paradoxically, it is the capital budget that delivers development. With sixty eight items in the exclusive and twenty nine in the concurrent lists we have a more justifiable claim to being a unitary state than a federal one.
“The states, as federating units have become absolutely dependent on federal allocations than their own internally generated revenues, what my friend and brother, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, refers to as feeding bottle federalism.
“The local government system across the country has completely collapsed leading to increased migration from the rural communities to state capitals overstretching infrastructure and facilities beyond limits.
Ndoma Egba who served as National Secretary of the APC 2018 National Convention further said that Nigeria was at a point of structural implosion adding that our economy has lost its productive capacity.
“The structure is no longer working. We are are at the point of structural implosion more so as the economy has lost its productive capacity.Manufacturing is grounded and the economy,s absorptive capabilities are zero and unemployment soars by the day.
“Social infrastructure has collapsed , social indices are unimpressive and all these are reflective in the security situation and the value of the Naira. Things will only get worse if we insist on retaining the current structure. We have to go back to the drawing board, we must restructure one way or the other,” he said
The post Nigeria’s Federal structure no longer workable — Ndoma Egba appeared first on Vanguard News.
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