Niger Delta Civil Society Forum Demands Presidential Executive Order to Strip Governors of 13% Derivation Fund Control

The Niger Delta Civil Society Forum calls for a Presidential Executive Order to manage 13% derivation funds through dedicated boards instead of state governors.

By: AXL Media

Published: Feb 26, 2026, 6:25 AM EST

Source: The information in this article was sourced from The Nation Newspaper

Challenging Decades of Constitutional Overreach

In a bold move to reform Nigeria’s fiscal federalism, the Niger Delta Civil Society Forum (NDCSF) has called for an end to the thirty-year era of state governors controlling the 13% derivation fund. In an open letter addressed to the Presidency, Forum Coordinator Comrade Ezekiel Kagbala argued that the current administrative structure violates the 1999 Constitution. The group contends that because oil and gas revenues fall under the Exclusive Legislative List, the management of funds derived from these minerals should remain under federal jurisdiction rather than being treated as state-level discretionary spending.

The Legal Argument for Direct Distribution

The NDCSF bases its case on Section 162(2) of the Constitution, which defines the derivation principle as a "first-line charge" on the Federation Account. The forum highlights a significant legal distinction: first-line charges are intended to be paid directly to the beneficiaries—the host communities—before the remaining 87% of revenue is shared among the three tiers of government. By handing the entire 13% to governors, the group claims the Federal Government has allowed a "sustained constitutional overreach" that bypasses the people who suffer the environmental and social impacts of oil extraction.

Restoring the Original Intent of the Struggle

The call for reform invokes the legacy of the late Chief Dr. Wellington Okrika, a pioneer in the agitation for the derivation principle. The forum pointed out that the struggle for these funds was led by civil society and community leaders, not by state governors or assemblies. The group expressed "moral trouble" over the perceived abuse of these funds by political actors who did not participate in the original agitation. They warned that the lack of transparency in how governors utilize these multi-billion naira allocations could eventually trigger international intervention if domestic corrections are not made.