RismadarVoice Reporters
October 18, 2026
Former Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate, Emmanuel Ibok-Essien, has renewed calls for an increase in the derivation allocation to oil-producing states from 13 per cent to 25 per cent.
Ibok-Essien, a former National Chairman of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), said the current allocation was inadequate to address environmental degradation, poverty and infrastructural challenges in oil-producing communities.
Speaking during a television interview, he welcomed former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s reported support for a higher derivation percentage but questioned why the former president had opposed similar demands while in office.
He recalled that Niger Delta delegates at the National Political Reform Conference demanded 25 per cent derivation, while the conference recommended 17 per cent, which was never implemented.
“The suffering in the Niger Delta region is too much,” Ibok-Essien said, stressing that affected communities require greater financial resources to address decades of environmental damage.
He urged the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) and the National Assembly to support a review of the revenue allocation formula.
The former senator maintained that increasing derivation would also benefit other mineral-producing states, including Zamfara, Kogi and Ogun, since the principle applies to natural resources beyond petroleum.
