President Bola Tinubu on Thursday told governors that local government chairmen can now be held responsible as the Supreme Court judgement has affirmed the autonomy of the 774 local governments in Nigeria.
The President welcomed the decision of the Supreme Court of Nigeria affirming the spirit, intent, and purpose of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on the statutory rights of local governments.
This was revealed in a statement by Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity.
The Governors who were sighted at the State House, Presidential Villa, included Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara state and Usman Ododo of Kogi state, amongst others.
Although, details of the meeting were not available at the time of sending the report, inside sources said it may not be unconnected with the Supreme Court judgement which may have stripped the states of the powers to control the government at the third tier.
The President, whe reacting to the Supreme Court judgement, stated that a fundamental challenge to the nation’s advancement over the years has been ineffective local government administration, as governance at the critical cellular level of socio-political configuration is nearly absent.
The judgement is sén as a relief to the local governments, many of who had been under he appendages of the state governments who control their resources through the instrument of the State Joint Account system.
The President emphasized that the onus is now on local council leaders to ensure that the broad spectrum of Nigerians living at that level are satisfied that they are benefitting from people-oriented service delivery.
“The Renewed Hope Agenda is about the people of this country, at all levels, irrespective of faith, tribe, gender, political affiliation, or any other artificial line they say exists between us. This country belongs to all of us.
“By virtue of this judgement, our people – especially the poor – will be able to hold their local leaders to account for their actions and inactions, adding that ” What is sent to local government accounts will be known, and services must now be provided without excuses.
“My administration instituted this suit because of our unwavering belief that our people must have relief and today’s judgement will ensure that it will be only those local officials elected by the people that will control the resources of the people.
This judgement stands as a resounding affirmation that we can use legitimate means of redress to restructure our country and restructure our economy to make Nigeria a better place to live in and a fairer society for all of our people,” President Tinubu states.
President Tinubu also noted that the provision of some essential amenities and public goods, such as the construction and maintenance of certain roads, streets, street lighting, drains, parks, gardens, open spaces, and other residual responsibilities, including community security, has tottered owing to the emasculation of local governments.
The President affirms that the decision of the Supreme Court to uphold the constitutional rights and ideals of local governments as regards financial autonomy, and other salient principles, is of historic significance and further reinforces the effort to enhance Nigeria’s true federal fabric for the development of the entire nation.
President Tinubu commends the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) for his diligence and patriotic effort on this important assignment.
The President states that his administration remains committed to protecting the principles of the charter governing citizens, institutions of government, arms, and tiers of government in furtherance of building an efficient and performance-driven governance system that works for every Nigerian.
