LG Autonomy: NULGE Slams President Tinubu, Soludo, Otti

The National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) has decried the late implementation of the local government’s financial autonomy in line with the Supreme Court ruling.

Naijaonpoint reported that Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, in a media chat, disclosed that the federal government was not paying monthly allocation for council areas into their accounts.

In a press conference on Thursday, NULGE National President, Hakeem Ambali, said it was wrong that six months after the ruling, no payment has been made. He stressed that implementation was supposed to start in October 2024.

“We are shocked that this hasn’t been put into practice yet. During the Yuletide, we were informed that it would go into effect in January, which was reassuring. The fact that we are still debating this matter six months later is discouraging.

“We think that implementation should have begun in October, but the court ruling did not allow for any delays. We are pleading with Mr. President to take immediate action because of this,” he said.

Ambali called on President Bola Tinubu to implement the ruling by January ending as he promised during interaction with governors on New Year Day.

“Additionally, I remember that at the Yuletide, the Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum visited the President, who reaffirmed his commitment to carrying out this directive. We anticipate that monies will be directly credited to local governments by the end of January. Enough is enough; we no longer want the practice of passing local government funding through middlemen. The court’s ruling is final and needs to be complied with,” he stated.

NULGE president explained that a proposal was sent to the federal government on how accountability can be enhanced in the council areas chairmen.

He pointed out the need to train councillors on the roles in ensuring that council area funds are used for the people.

Ambali said the local government’s financial autonomy would help in the development of the grassroots areas.

“The presidency has received proposals from the technical committee to protect the procedure. For instance, we suggested that the Federation Account Allocation Committee publicize monthly allocations from local governments in national newspapers.

“Furthermore, we suggested forming a monitoring committee to keep tabs on payments. Additionally, the Minister of Special Duties ought to plan seminars aimed at enhancing the capacity of councillors assigned to oversight duties. Remember that local governments now have access to the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit. Once local governments receive direct allocations, we will see a significant difference.

“Giving someone a portion of your money is one thing; having control over your finances is quite another. Local governments will finally be in control of their finances thanks to direct allocations,” he explained.

Ambali further condemned laws made by Governor Alex Otti of Abia State and Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State.

He noted that the laws were made to compromise the autonomy granted to local government chairmen. He said their laws were void.

“Governors such as Soludo and Otti hurried to enact laws that went against the ruling of the Supreme Court. Since they are unable to overrule the court’s ruling, such a law is void.

“Their activities are unlawful and cannot be tolerated under the law, as the Attorney General has already made clear.

“Governors Soludo and Otti’s fearful measures won’t work. Chairmen and officials of local governments are not immune, in contrast to governors. The entire force of the law will be applied to anyone who disobeys it,” he added.