The lawmaker representing Oyo Central in the upper chamber, Senator Teslim Folarin has said that he belongs to the restructuring school of thought rather than being a break up crusader in Nigeria.
He revealed this while hosting members of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Oyo State Council, on Iftar at his Oluyole residence in Ibadan.
Folarin said the removal of the exclusive list from the constitution will enable states to grow at their own pace.
Ayingun Olubadan also condemned the present federal allocation system, arguing that it has never worked in the interest of the country.
“I belong to the restructuring school of thought. There is something in the constitution that is called the exclusive list; we need to get rid of that”.
“Once we get rid of the exclusive list, we are home and dry. What it means is that every state will have to develop at its own pace and then we can begin to hold our leaders accountable.”
“Nigeria is a beautiful country but that is if we all get it right. This idea of one cap fits all cannot get us anywhere. It has never worked and it won’t work.
“It is not sustainable; every month, they (states) go to Abuja to share money and come back. It breeds laziness, nobody is thinking. Oyo state is the biggest producer of cassava after overtaking Edo state.
“If you have seen a paper that states the natural resources of every state, you will not believe the sort of resources we have; it is unbelievable.
“I was talking about exclusive list; how can you say the land that has all the natural resources will be controlled by the federal government? It won’t work. We will do our best. Whether you have Oduduwa Republic or whatever, I don’t believe it”, Folarin said.
