LANDMARK JUDGEMENT OF THE SUPREME COURT ON THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUTONOMY AND CONTROL OF LG FUNDS: STATEMENT BY HON CHIJIOKE EDEOGA, THE ENUGU STATE GOVERNORSHIP CANDIDATE OF THE LABOUR PARTY IN THE 2023 ELECTIONS
The Supreme Court of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, on Thursday, July 11, 2024, delivered a landmark judgement on the control of the allocations due to local councils in Nigeria, declaring that that it was unconstitutional for state governors to hold onto funds meant for Local Government.
The judgement, which noted that local governments have since stopped receiving the money meant for them from the state governors who act in their stead also ordered that only democratically elected local government councils in the country should be allowed to manage their funds themselves.
While it is suspected that the judgment may not meet the approval of advocates of political restructuring in Nigeria, there is no doubt that it accords with the demands of the existing constitutional order.
The violation of the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by governors of Nigerian states has been going on with flagrant impunity for many years and under different administrations since 1999. Local Government Areas, recognized in the Nigerian Constitution as the third tier of government and the one closest to the people, have been deprived of the funds needed for grassroots development, thus existing at the mercy and state governors.
Over the years, state governors have made local government funds their cash cows, receiving and dispensing as they deemed fit, and without regard to the development imperatives of the councils, their employees, and their respective peculiar development challenges.
This abuse has given rise to situations where local councils are forced to queue on a strange breadline, where governors favour some local governments while sidelining others.
The offices of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and other anti-corruption agencies are stacked with files bursting with evidence of abuse of local council funds by state governors, whose prosecution has been hindered by red tape and other inexplicable reasons.
I recall that during my campaign for the Governorship of Enugu State, I highlighted the deplorable management of local council funds in Enugu State and vowed that council funds would be sacrosanct if I won the election. As a former local government Chairman, I knew the importance of those funds and the leverage they provide for rural development, employment generation, and economic empowerment.
My belief is that rather than treat council funds as a source of free money as most state governors see them, I would ensure easy and direct access to it by council chairmen as a means of ensuring that local government councils become complementary to the state government’s development efforts. I also felt that compliance among the local government areas in my state would be a catalyst for development, thereby reducing the pressure on state resources.
Empowered Local councils, I also believe, would minimize the tendency of some governors and state officials to favour their local governments of origin while sidelining others.
I am particularly relieved that the administration of President Bola Tinubu has taken this rare positive step towards restoring the glories of local administration in Nigeria. Those of us in the Enugu State chapter of the Labour Party see this as a step in the right democratic direction and must single out President Tinubu and the Attorney General of the Federation, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, for pursuing this judgement with a single-minded determination and patriotic purposefulness.
While we commend the current administration for the rare courage and vision deployed in pursuit of this case, we must also advise against allowing the judgement to form another layer of entry in our Case Laws. Nigerians are excited by the judgement and are looking forward to the restoration it would bring to bear on rural development across the country, and would be displeased if deliberate political, judicial, and institutional efforts are not made to ensure that implementation.
As it stands, the EFCC will not have any excuse not to be alive to its responsibilities regarding fighting corruption in local government areas.
Before this landmark judgement, the immunity granted by the Constitution to state governors had occasioned delays and other forms of frustration that slowed the investigation and prosecution of cases of abuse of council funds in Nigeria.
Local Government Chairmen in Nigeria are not covered by any constitutional immunity, and as a result, would be directly held responsible for the utilization of the funds accruing to them from the federation account.
This judgement, it must be emphasised, is a PUBLIC INTEREST MATTER and has reignited hope of a possible grassroots development renaissance among the progressive-minded people that are interested in the development of Nigeria and the wellbeing of everyone.
To this end, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit must, as a matter of urgency, set up SPECIAL UNITS whose brief shall be to monitor full compliance with this judgement and proactively thwart any possible attempts by some state governors to circumvent the judgement.
Such desks should be equipped to investigate, arrest, and immediately diligently prosecute those found culpable. If the anti-crime agencies are ready, there are right-thinking Nigerians who will be willing to partner with the Federal Government and its agencies to deepen the oversight and policing of local council funds.
I also urge the Attorney General of the Federation to immediately publish consequential guidelines to the relevant agencies of government to ensure full and immediate compliance with the spirit and the letters of the Supreme Court judgment.
The National Assembly should also expedite work on the constitution amendment process to remove the conduct of local government elections from the ambit of state government-created electoral bodies.
Signed:
Hon Barr Chijioke Edeoga
Enugu State Labour Party Governorship candidate in the 2023 elections
