Diaspora Remittances: Fayemi’s Aide, Odere, Calls For States Involvement In Profit Sharing

• “follow the money especially in this day and age where oil is beginning to dry up.”

The Senior Special Assistant to Ekiti State Governor on Diaspora Affairs Mr. Femi Odere has made a strong case for states in the federation to partake in sharing the profits that are made by remittance companies and commercial banks.

Odere’s call came on the heels of the just concluded 3-day summit that witnessed the launch of the “National Diaspora Policy”, “The 3rd Summit of the State Diaspora Focal Point Officers (SDFPOs)” and the “Standing Committee on Diaspora Matters” at the Sheraton Hotel Ladi Kwali Hall, Abuja on May 18-20.

Odere made this argument when the States Diaspora Focal Point Officers (SDFPOs) paid a working visit to the House of Representatives Committee on Diaspora Affairs in the National Assembly, a committee spearheaded by Hon. (Mrs.) Tolulope Akande Sadipe (APC-OYO).The House Chairperson used the occasion to also brief the focal officers on the functions and activities of the committee.

In making his submission, Fayemi’s aide admonished the committee to always “follow the money especially in this day and age where oil is beginning to dry up.” Odere said it is critically important that we “begin to look for creative ways to generate revenue for the states.”

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To buttress his argument, the Ekiti State Focal Officer said if it was a fact that Nigeria receives on average $25 billion annually, it goes without saying that remittance companies and commercial banks are making hundreds of million of dollars annually as profits on these remittances. “And the states get nothing?”

“There has to be some mechanisms through legislation for states to be able to share in these profits,” Odere said.

In her response, the House Chairperson Hon. (Mrs.) Sadipe thanks Fayemi’s aide for bringing up what she described as “this extremely important point” as the Committee didn’t think about the states in the “profit sharing arrangement through the legislation we’re working on.”

“The bill we’re working on is how about one percent of the remittance profits can accrue to the federal government. But since you have brought up this very important point, we shall rework the bill that’s already pending to be discussed in the House in order to incorporate the states in this profit sharing arrangement. This is a very timely submission by Ekiti Focal Point Officer,” Hon. Sadipe said.

Ekohotblog