Governors of the South-South geopolitical zone, under the aegis of the South-South Governors’ Forum have expressed support for the ongoing tax reforms initiated by the President Bola Tinubu-led administration.
The Forum, in a communique issued on Tuesday during their meeting in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, however, urged President Tinubu to extend the proposed Value Added Tax (VAT) sharing to other areas of derivation like oil and gas.
The South-South governors also called on the federal government to extend the ongoing remediation efforts in Ogoni land to other polluted areas in the region.
Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri who read the communique after he was elected as chairman of the Forum, argued that the law on oil derivation prescribed a minimum of 13 per cent, urging the federal government to also consider increasing the amount on oil derivation for states in the region.
The Forum also commended the president for the award and commencement of the Lagos – Calabar Coastal Highway project road project but demanded that the project should equally commence from the Calabar axis as it would not only enhance connectivity but also stimulate economic development in the region.
Governors of the region also thanked President Tinubu for the ongoing work on the East-West Road and stressed that work should be expedited to ensure early completion.
A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Bayelsa State governor, Daniel Alabrah, the South-South governors unanimously picked Senator Diri as chairman of the forum, while his Cross River counterpart, Senator Bassey Otu emerged as the vice chairman of the forum.
Responding to his emergence as the chairman of the forum, Governor Diri described it as a call to higher service and promised to serve the forum and the region diligently.
He said the role was not an office for him alone, but a collective task for all governors of the South-South to move the region forward.
In their remarks, Governors Umo Eno (Akwa Ibom), Senator Bassey Otu (Cross River), Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori (Delta) and Siminalayi Fubara (Rivers) appreciated Diri for hosting the meeting, and for setting the tone for the states to have action plans and delivery timetable on agreed issues.
The governors noted that the meeting was long overdue, saying at it was expedient for states in the region to work together to forge a buoyant economy outside of oil and gas.
They also maintained that speaking in one voice would send the right signal that the region deserved the necessary attention from the government at the Centre.
According to the governors, previous meetings, particularly under the auspices of the BRACED (Bayelsa Rivers Akwa Ibom Cross River Edo and Delta) Commission had not yielded the necessary results.
They prayed that the new forum under the leadership of Governor Diri would open a new vista for the region while urging forum members to put political affiliations aside to enable them achieve their objectives.
