By James Orji
The Northern Elders Forum, NEF has declared that the North is boyant economically and does not need the Value Added Tax, VAT from other regions to survive.
The northern elders said this in response to suggestions that VAT from the south is used to develop the region.
Some state governments in the southern part of the country have recently enacted laws that gives them powers to collect VAT in their jurisdiction.
Apart from that, Rivers and Lagos states are currently in court with the federal government as to who has the power to collect VAT.
Speaking on the issue, the NEF spokesman, Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed said the VAT controversy has the potential to reset problems arising from the country’s federation, and that the court should be allowed to settle the matter.
Baba-Ahmed said when the matter is finally settled it will address all issues relating to the restructuring of the country, adding that the President Muhammadu Buhari administration has refused to address the issue.
Baba-Ahmed who spoke on Arise Television said he “ will advise that we wait to hear what the court says. However, even the fact that it has become an issue suggests that we really do need to address the fundamentals and the manner in which the federation works.
“We have always supported restructuring. We have always asked that a major and genuine shift initiative either by groups or the National Assembly so that matters like this be addressed properly.
“If we don’t do that now, then we should get a leader that would do that in 2023. This administration appears not to understand the importance of restructuring; we do in the north, we recognise the fact that we need to change the manner in which we generate wealth and allocate (it).”
He said the north wants the country to restructure as soon as possible, noting that the region does not depend on other regions to survive economically.
According to him “The thing about is: the north wants restructuring; the north wants fiscal federalism. We are a rich region and we can live on what we have, even if we don’t have the billions that accrue to others states. Our poverty is not a kind of problem that we would break this country over.”
He said the VAT debacle is a wake-up call to northern governors who need to recognise the fact that VAT or no VAT, they need to develop their resources and develop the human capital of the north.
“North, you said you have many people but you are under-developing your own people – the biggest liability of the north is that we have a huge population that is under-developed. You need to develop the human capital that you have.
“We need leaders, the current governors don’t recognise this. Otherwise, they won’t be involved in this argument; allow the court to decide.
“But for goodness sake, (they should) begin to think — what else can we do if the court decides now that Rivers State is right, Lagos State is right, and they won’t be getting all these billions coming in from VAT? What happens?”
Baba-Ahmed urged northern leaders to develop the area using enormous agricultural and other resources available in the region. He said “sitting on wealth, we have massive resources in this country, we have to fight insecurity first, and the Federal Government has to help us, we need to clear the bushes, the forests and all the criminals that are there and we need to go back to farming.
“Agriculture is a major asset; we have land, we have water, we have livestock, we have minerals that are literally begging to be picked from the ground but our governors are too focused on the pittance that they are getting. This is wrong.”
