Supreme Court of Nigeria has been committed on its judgement granting the 774 local governments in the country autonomy.
New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) governorship candidate in the forthcoming November 16, 2024 gubernatorial election in Ondo State, Gbenga Edema commended the apex court for the landmark judgement.
The NNPP standard bearer is one of the prominent Nigerians who have been advocating for the autonomy of the third tier of government in the federation.
He noted that with the historic judgement, there would meteoric development and progress at the grassroots level across the 774 local government areas in the federation.
Edema said: “The judgement will enable the local government in the country to better serve their communities and address their unique needs.
“The Supreme Court ruling is a victory for democracy and will enable local authorities to better serve the needs of their residents.
“As commendable as the Supreme Court’s judgment is, it would not end the controversy over the local government autonomy, unless and until the States are compelled to respect the section 7 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) which stipulates that local government administration must be democratically elected and be allowed to exercise all their functions enumerated in the Fourth Schedule to the said Constitution.
“In Ondo State, the 18 local governments have been denied the opportunity to collect rates in the markets. The state government has taken over the collection of cemetery rate, tenement rate, licensing, regulation, and control of the sale of liquor for the past eight years.”
Edema, however, advised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to send amendments to the National Assembly to correct the lapses created by the Supreme Court judgment and ensure that local governments work for the benefit of the citizens.
He charged prospective heads at the local councils to ensure transparency and accountability in the management of local government affairs.
The former representative of Ondo State on the Board of Niger Delta Development Commission(NDDC) also condemned Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa for constituting transition committees for the 33 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) which had been nullified by the court.
He said: “Only this morning, the Supreme Court declared the composition of caretaker committee for local government councils illegal, yet Governor Aiyedatiwa still went ahead to purportedly announce a caretaker committee for the local government area councils.
“Even if the court did not declare the composition of caretaker committee for the local councils illegal, when was the list sent to the House of Assembly that has the power to approve such composition.
“It is disheartening to see the governor constitute transition committees for LCDAs that have been deemed illegal by the court.
“This blatant disregard for the rule of law undermines the principles of governance and accountability.”
“Respecting judicial judgement is fundamental to maintaining the integrity of our governance system. We must ensure that the law is upheld and that governance is conducted in a transparent and lawful manner.”