LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUTONOMY: MAKINDE REACTS TO SUPREME COURT RULING ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL AUTONOMY, SETS UP REVIEW COMMITTEES

Governor Oluseyi Makinde, the Executive Governor of Oyo State has reacted to the Judgement of Nigeria's Apex Court giving financial autonomy to the nation's Local Governments. 

The Federal Government had instituted a legal action against the governors of the 36 states of the federation at the Supreme Court over alleged misconduct in the administration of Local Government Areas. The governors of the 36 states were sued through their respective Attorneys General.

The governor on Monday set up two committees saddled with the responsibilities of reviewing the Supreme Court judgement on local government autonomy and coming up with recommendations that will ensure that the change does not affect the people of the state negatively.

Makinde maintained that the judgement has created a constitutional lacuna that will throw up different challenges at the local government level.

He said though he is not opposed to transparency in the councils, the Supreme Court judgement “is not a silver bullet that will wash away” Nigeria’s problems.

Makinde stated this during an Advisory and Consultative Committee Meeting comprising stakeholders in the local government system, noting that he convened a meeting of all relevant stakeholders in the local government system so that they could outline the major challenges at the councils and develop solutions that will ensure a seamless implementation of the process.

Present at the consultative stakeholders meeting are members of Oyo state chapter, Association of Local Government Administration (ALGON), Attorney General of the state and Commissioner for Justice, Barrister Abiodun Aikomo, Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Otunba Ademola Ojo, and Chairman House of Assembly Committee on Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters.

Others in attendance are representatives of the Nigeria Labor Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), and Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP).

Makinde at the meeting held at the Executive Chamber of the Governor’s Office on Monday, July 15 disclosed that the stakeholders engagement aimed to discuss the decision of the Supreme Court as it concerns financial autonomy for the local government Councils.

The governor said, “I called this meeting because I felt that even though we have not seen the Certified True Copy of the judgment of the Supreme Court, we have to be proactive and discuss the decision of the Supreme Court as it concerns financial autonomy of the local government councils because I believe a lacuna has been created between the decision and the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that we all swore to uphold.

“The law is the law and when there is a conflict, yes, we should go to the court. But it behooves on us to look for our own homegrown solutions that can ensure that we have transparency and that our people do not suffer. This is because when two elephants are fighting it is the grass that will suffer.”

While lamenting the challenges the Supreme Court judgement portends for state government, Makinde insisted that the problem confronting the nation was not how to share money but how to become more productive and create economic prosperity, stressing that before his administration came on board, leave bonuses were last paid in 2017.

He added that his administration paid that of 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 while highlighting some of the efforts to deliver good governance at the grassroots, the governor added that Primary health care facilities, inner roads among others were all in bad shape and that he has continuously worked collaboratively with the LGs to deliver dividends of democracy to the people.

“Let me thank you all for joining this important consultative meeting. I want us to discuss the decision of the Supreme Court as it concerns financial autonomy of the local government councils.

“I believe a lacuna has been created between the decision and the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. We all swore to uphold the constitution but the law is the law. If the law is in conflict, it behoves on us to look for our own home-grown solution that can ensure that we have transparency and operate with our people. This is because when two elephants are fighting, the grass will suffer.

“Let me also recall that since the beginning of this administration, we have conducted two local government elections and I say to say ‘did I not tell you’? When I was sworn in, I dissolved the local government. The Supreme Court just basically said to us that governors don’t have the right to dissolve the councils but why did I dissolve them then?

“It was because elections were held into the LCDAs and the same Supreme Court has basically now said that only 774 LGAs in Nigeria. So, there is confusion in the land, but when you have confusion, what it means is that the structure is shaking and we have to remove much of those confusions as much as possible.

“So, we will be outlining the major challenges we have at the local government areas, so that we can develop our own solution. And the the challenges of addressed, will ensure that we have seamless implementation of the process that can allow Oyo State to continue to …

“So, on the issue of LG elections in Oyo State, we don’t have caretaker committees at the local level. We planned the elections in a way that not a single day was given out. We have a responsible government in Oyo State, we don’t need the federal government to tell us what to do. We know what is good and we know what is good for our people.

“Go back a little bit, what we inherited as an administration in 2019 was a local government system that was owing backlog of salaries, gratuities, pensions. I am saying this because Oyo State will get out of this even stronger. We are people that know what is good for our people. We can run our affairs by ourselves. The FG is not superior constitutionally to the state government though they have more resources than the states. So, we can do what is right in Oyo State and we have been doing what is right.

“For the primary school teachers, the Chairman of NUT is here. Before we came in, leave bonuses were last paid in 2017 and we paid that of 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023. The Primary health care facilities, inner roads were all in bad shape. We Al have been working collaboratively with the LGs to deliver dividends of democracy to our people.

“We were able to clear those salary arrears. We paid N18bn in pension and gratuities over these period. We upgraded about 209 PHCs, equipped about 264, completed 60 model schools. We constructed and renovated hundreds of primary school classrooms and fixed some Omer roads but there are still challenges that we have to address. We still have backlog of gratuities and pension.

“The local government is owing about N55bn in pension and gratuities. We are developing infrastructure that would push the economy and raise the living standard of their people and push their economy towards sustainable goals. But for us, at that time, our priority was not to deploy resources. What I am hearing right now is that our problem is not also money but how to share it. But I insist that our problem is not how to share money but how how to bake a bigger cake and bring our people out of hunger and poverty and stop the anger in the land.

“Our people do not care of the road is fixed by the FG or the state government or the LG. They just want to see good roads. An example is the Oyo-Iseyin road through Fasola, which is a Federal Government road but the state government fixed it and I have the letter for the FG when I wrote it for approval. It is a critical road to Oyo State economy.

“I believe it is our problem irrespective of what they are doing at the federal level. We know what is important to the lives of our own people here in Oyo State. I learnt FAAC is tomorrow (Tuesday) and all of you can come. We will delay the implementation for the next ninety days, which is three FAACs from now. They will still pay the money into JAC account.

“You make the laws, you break it. So, the law is at your own… That is not how to run a country. If you make the law, let us all obey the law. For us in Oyo State, we can solve our own problem, deal with our situation and prioritize our people. Our pass mark is to discuss among ourselves and whatever we agree upon.

“I am not saying things should not be transparent at the local government level but it is a distraction to say this is the magic bullet that will wash away our problems. NULGE is here, NUP, NUT and others are here. So, let us sit down and discuss and fashion out our own way out of this issue.” Governor Makinde said.

“But there are still challenges that we have to address. We still have a backlog of gratuities and pensions. The local governments owe about N55bn in pension and gratuities. We are developing infrastructure that would push the economy and raise the living standard of their people and push their economy towards sustainable goals.”

Similarly, the Attorney General of Oyo state and Commissioner for Justice, Barrister Abiodun Aikomo and Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Otunba Ademola Ojo during a press briefing held at the Press Conference Room of the Governor’s Office told newsmen that the two newly set up committees have been tasked with the responsibility of reviewing the specifics of the Supreme Court ruling and proposing a detailed implementation plan that adheres to both constitutional requirements and practical considerations in the best interest of the people.

Barrister Aikomo also added that the mandate of the committees includes review and recommendation for new frameworks for implementation of the financial autonomy, and identifying potential challenges and solutions.

Recall that the Supreme Court ruling, which mandates direct operation and administration of Local Government funds by the third tier of government without interference from state governors has sparked nationwide debates.

Barrister Aikomo, who disclosed that the committees have been given between four to six weeks to conclude review of the ruling and come up with recommendations however, noted that as of press time, the state has yet to receive the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the Supreme Court Judgement.

While noting that the Supreme Court judgement has created a Lacuna, he said legal experts have been asked to look at it stressing that governor Makinde, being a proactive leader, has decided to call the emergency consultative stakeholders meeting to fashion out a lasting solution in the best interest of the people of the state.

He added that the governor has shown that he is committed to the welfare of Oyo state people and the development of the state.