Jigawa Gov seeks fairness in revenue allocation formula review

Umar Namadi, Jigawa State Governor has expressed optimism that the ongoing review of Nigeria’s revenue allocation formula by the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission will be guided by fairness, equity and justice for all states and stakeholders.

The governor made the remarks while receiving a delegation from the commission led by Imo Effiong Akpan at the Government House in Dutse on Wednesday.

The delegation was in Jigawa State to commence the Nationwide Data Verification Exercise being conducted across the federation as part of the ongoing review of the country’s revenue allocation formula.

Speaking during the meeting, Governor Namadi described the exercise as timely and necessary considering the changing socio-economic realities in the country.

“We are confident that there will be fairness in this exercise. We believe everybody will be treated fairly according to the standards expected,” the governor said.

He commended the commission for initiating the review process, noting that previous attempts to review the revenue allocation formula had failed to achieve the desired outcome.

“The bold attempt by the Commission to review the revenue allocation formula is something to be appreciated because several attempts were made in the past without success.

“But with the determination demonstrated by the current leadership, we are optimistic that this exercise will succeed, Insha’Allah”, he stated.

Governor Namadi also assured the commission of the Jigawa State Government’s support and cooperation throughout the verification exercise.

Earlier, Akpan said the Nationwide Data Verification Exercise was aimed at ensuring that data used for revenue allocation reflects current realities across the federation.

According to him, changes in population dynamics, infrastructure growth and developmental realities across states made periodic review and verification necessary to ensure fairness and equity in the sharing of national resources.

Akpan further assured the governor that the exercise would be conducted with professionalism, transparency and objectivity in line with global best practices.