News Rendezvous

The Adamawa state government has approached the supreme court with the intent of challenging the federal government over distribution of revenue from the federation account. The state government challenged that all revenue in the federation’s account must be shared among all the tiers of government and that the federal government cannot use its discretion to unconstitutionally deduct monies from the federation’s account unless it is authorized by law.

The Adamawa state government seeks the supreme court’s interpretation of Section 162 of the Constitution, which it says prescribed that the entire sum accrued to the federation’s account must be distributed among all levels of government in the federation without resorting to unauthorized deductions.

The Adamawa state government made this known in a press statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the state Governor, Humwashi Wonosikou, and made available to Newsmen, Wednesday.

The statement reads, “The Adamawa State Government is seeking the Supreme Court’s interpretation of Section 162 (1), (2) and (3) of the Constitution regarding the distribution of revenue from the Federation Account.”

The state government argues that, “The entire sum in the Federation Account must be distributed among all levels of government without deductions, except as permitted by law.

“The President must comply strictly with the Constitution in managing and distributing revenue.

“All revenue collected, except those exempted by the Constitution, must be paid into the Federation Account for distribution to all tiers of government.

“The Federal Government has no discretion to withhold or deduct revenue for any purpose not expressly permitted by the Constitution.”

The statement adds that the Adamawa state government is in essence seeking a declaration that would compel, “The Federal Government to distribute the entire revenue from the Federation Account without deductions, except as permitted by law.

“That any deductions or withholdings made without constitutional backing are unconstitutional.

“That the Federal Government’s discretion to manage revenue is limited to only what is expressly permitted by the Constitution.

“And that the State government is seeking a strict interpretation of the Constitution to ensure that revenue distribution is done in a transparent and constitutional manner, without arbitrary deductions or withholdings by the Federal Government