FEDERAL GOVERNMENT APPROVES FOUR OIL WELLS FOR LAGOS

The Federal Government has approved four of the five oil wells discovered in Lagos as truly belonging to the state, but disproves the state’s ownership of one other oil well, which it said fell beyond 200 metres isobaths and did not legitimately belong to Lagos state.

Aliyu Mohammed, Chairman, Indices and Disbursement Committee of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RMAFC, stated this during a visit to Akinwunmi Ambode, Lagos state governor on Wednesday. The visit was aimed at verifying crude oil and gas production from Aje Oil wells for the purpose of disbursement of 13 per cent derivation fund to the state in line with the Constitution.

In his remarks, Ambode described the visit as historic and one that would go down in the annals of the history of Lagos State, as the visit was the official step that would take Lagos to that final destination as an oil-producing state.

“We are very glad to receive this delegation. We also want to thank the Federal Government, most especially President Muhammadu Buhari for making this to happen very promptly. I want to say that this has been the promptest action that has been taken by RMAFC since I have known the Commission.

The governor then stated the importance of the discovery of oil wells in Lagos especially as a source of expanding Internally Generated Revenue, which will in turn reduce dependency on the federal government for finance. “This would give us revenue dependence in a manner that there would be equal growth from all the nooks and crannies of Nigeria. One is happy that RMAFC has taken this step and also to say that they should also encourage other states to engage in such activities that would allow them to be able to activate whatever mineral deposit that we have in the various states in conjunction with the Federal Government, so that we can start to diversify revenue and growth and then create a balanced growth and development for the whole country,” said Ambode.