A human rights activist, Alhaji Shettima Yerima, has urged all the Local Government (LG) chairmen in the country to ensure good governance and accountability of the funds that would be directly paid to LG accounts.
Yerima, the Founder of Arewa Youths Consultative Forum, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Lagos.
He was reacting to the the Supreme Court judgment which ordered the Federal Government to directly pay the allocation to LGs accounts.
Yerima said the chairmen should prioritise development of infrastructure, agriculture, health, security and education sectors at the grassroots in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
He said that the ruling by the Supreme Court was a right step as it would ensure citizens demand good governance and accountability at the grassroots level.
Yerima noted that with the landmark ruling, the court had taken a step in the right direction towards empowering the local governments to have necessary resources to carry out their mandate.
“The full autonomy will ensure that resources are used judiciously and transparently, leading to greater trust and confidence in the government’s ability to deliver on its promises.
“Also, financial autonomy for Local Government Areas will foster greater decentralisation of power and promote a more inclusive and participatory approach to governance.
“Additionally, it will give LGs to have control over their finances, the local governments should be able to allocate resources more efficiently and effectively, leading to improved service delivery and enhanced development outcomes.
Yerima said that the ruling marked the first bold move by any successive administration in Nigeria towards granting more power and autonomy to the grassroots level of governance.
According to him, the decision holds the promise of reviving grassroots development and bringing about positive change for the local communities across the country.
He noted that the issue of financial autonomy for local government areas had been a longstanding debate in Nigeria.
“With this, many arguing that the lack of autonomy had hindered their ability to effectively govern and provide essential services to their communities.”
The activist noted that financial autonomy would help to reduce bureaucratic red tape and streamline decision making processes, allowing for quicker and more responsive governance at the grassroots level.
According to him, this, in turn, will empower local leaders to take ownership of their development agenda and drive progress in their communities.
He said that it was a welcome development that holds great promise for reviving grassroots development and bringing about positive change for the local communities.
Yerima said it would also strengthen governance at the grassroots level and empower local governments to fulfill their mandate of serving the people.
He added that the move should be seen as a significant milestone in Nigeria’s quest for good governance and sustainable development.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the Supreme Court had on Thursday ruled in favour of full financial autonomy for the 774 local government councils of the country.
In the landmark judgment, the court ordered the Federal Government to immediately start direct payment of local governments’funds to their 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 areas in the country constitutionally should have the freedom to manage their funds themselves.
NAN reports that the ruling followed a legal action instituted by the federal government against the governors of the 36 states at the Supreme Court over what it called the state governments’ interference in the administration of LGs in their respective states.
The suit filed by the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, sought full autonomy for all LGs in the country.
In the suit, the Federal Government specifically prayed the court to issue an order, prohibiting state governors from embarking on unilateral, arbitrary and unlawful dissolution of democratically elected local government leaders.
The suit also asked for an order permitting the funds standing in the credits of local governments to be directly channelled to them from the Federation Account, in line with the provisions of the constitution as against the alleged unlawful joint accounts created by governors.
The Federal Government also prayed the Supreme Court for an order stopping governors from further constituting caretaker committees to run the affairs of local governments as against the constitutionally recognized and guaranteed democratic system.
It equally applied for an order of injunction restraining the governors, their agents and privies from receiving, spending or tampering with funds released from the federation account for the benefits of local governments when no democratically elected local government system is put in place in the states. (NAN
