LG Autonomy: S’ Court ruling validates Tinubu’s genuine heart for downtrodden
The Coalition of Pro-Democracy Groups for A Better Nigeria, says Supreme Court’s judgment granting local government autonomy validates President Bola Tinubu’s genuine heart to protect the downtrodden.
The National Coordinator of the group, Awa Bamiji, in a statement on Friday in Lagos, described the apex court ruling as a step towards strengthening democracy and protecting the downtrodden at the grassroots.
Applauding the President’s efforts towards securing the justice for grassroots governance, Bamiji said that the court remained hope of the common man, and by the judgement had strengthen democracy.
“This has historically brought to an end deafening and continuous noise as well as incessant protest against the interference of the State Governors by Nigerian masses led by the National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE).
“If Mr President could boldly achieve this under his highly promising administration within a year, this is to tell us that he is genuinely out to protect the downtrodden,” Bamiji said.
He recalled that a former Chairman of Ijebu East Local Government, Mr Wale Adedayo, fell victim of being recently removed by the governor for agitating for local government autonomy while serving as chairman.
He said that with this historic judgement, Adedayo and other activists had just been vindicated as ‘hero of democracy”.
Bamiji said that autonomy for local government was also part of the 2014 National Conference resolutions.
He said that the autonomy was also supported by the Nasir El- Rufai led All Progressives’ Congress (APC) 23 Member Committee on true federalism in 2017 inaugurated by the APC National Chairman, Chief John Odigie Oyegun.
“More reforms are to follow like general acceptable minimum wage for workers, state police among others,” the activist said.
He said that the potential excesses of some local government chairmen could be put to constant check by the state governors, Local Government Service Commissions as well as the Anti -Graft Agencies.
He added that the civil society organisations should also be ready to put the council chairmen on their toes.
According to him, this check is needed to prevent misplacement of priorities by some council chairmen.
He said that council chairmen must not lose focus in terms of pressing needs of the people in their individual communities.
Bamiji said that council chairman must avoid mismanagement of government resources, corruption, embezzlement and maladministration.
The Apex Court had on Thursday ruled in favour of full financial autonomy for the 774 local government councils in the country.
In the landmark judgment, the court ordered the Federal Government to immediately start direct payment of local governments’ funds to the councils’ exclusive accounts.
Reading the lead judgment, Justice Emmanuel Agim decried the decades-long refusal of state governments to allow financial autonomy for local governments in their respective states.
Justice Agim noted that the 774 local government councils in the country,constitutionally, should have the freedom to manage their funds themselves.
