Ijaw youths demand direct allocation of 13% derivation fund to DESOPADEC

DELTA Ijaw Oil Producing Areas Youths Assembly (DIOPAYA) has urged the Federal Government to allocate the 13 per cent Derivation Fund due to them directly through the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC).The Ijaw youths maintained that it was only through this means they could access the fund that they alleged was being manipulated by the state government and members of the State House of Assembly.They said 'instead of providing checks and balances on the activities of the executive arm, the House of Assembly has become a willing ally in the perpetration of project manipulation, thereby making the commission a conduit to satisfy their political whims and caprices'.In a statement signed by Wuruyai Joseph, President; Napoleon Egin, Esq, President-General Egbema Youth Council; Comrades Jackson Timiyan and John Tuaghaye respectively, they stated that projects submitted by host communities, based on production quantum were flagrantly replaced with projects of members of the House of Assembly without their consent, just as even projects completed and inaugurated over three years ago had not been paid for, while the contractors were battling with their banks from where they secured loans to execute the jobs.While stating that 13 per cent Derivation Fund is enshrined in the 1999 Constitution and therefore on the first line charge of the Federation Account, they maintained that it was unconstitutional to allocate the fund through a third party.They added that 'we demand that our share based on production quantum be paid directly to the commission where we can access it to avoid crisis in Delta State.
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