What does the Supreme Court ruling on LG autonomy mean for democracy?

Many experts, concerned Nigerians have said that the Supreme Court judgement giving financial autonomy to local government in Nigeria is a significant step forward toward deepening democracy and bringing governance closer to the people.

With the apex court ruling, it is believed that citizens can now hold their leaders accountable, which could ultimately translate to good governance and accountability.

Justice Emmanuel Agim-led Supreme Court Justices delivered a judgement Thursday in a suit filed by the federal government against the governments of the 36 states, seeking full autonomy for 774 Local Government Councils in the country as the Supreme Court held that LG allocations should no longer be paid through the state government.

In the last few days, many Nigerians have reacted to the ruling, while many applauded the apex court for the bold decision, there also some who fear that the ruling may not be heeded to by state governors.

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For many, the judgement has reopened the need for reform in the conduct of council poll in the country.

There are suggestions that with the financial autonomy granted to local government council, council election should be conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and that the state electoral commissions should be disbanded forthwith.

There is the agreement that the council election in Nigeria as presently conducted was a waste of public funds and a mockery of democracy in the country.

In a statement, the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room (Situation Room) called for a reform to the process for conducting elections into local government councils in the wake of the Supreme Court’s judgement in favour of local governments’ financial autonomy from the state governments.

The Situation Room pointed out that the pronouncement was a vital intervention in Nigeria’s democratic development and called on the state governments to comply with the decision forthwith and strengthen the institution of governance at the grassroots by ensuring that local government can deliver essential services without any hindrance.

Speaking in the same vein, Charless Obot, a professor of broadcast journalism, said the judgement was long overdue, describing it as result-oriented.

Obot suggested that with the financial autonomy granted to local government, election at that level should be conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), saying the state electoral commissions should be disbanded forthwith.

Some Nigerians have expressed concerns about the ruling and its interpretation, especially in the conduct of election in councils across the country.

Speaking to BusinessDay Sunday, legal Practitioner, Akinwole Okenile said his understanding of the Supreme Court ruling was that it only focuses on financial autonomy for councils, rather than if governors should conduct elections or not.

The lawyer stressed that the ruling was silent on council election, but added that there could be more clear details of the judgement in the coming days.

“The ruling to me was not explicit and was silent on council poll, may be, more details could come in the coming days, but my understanding is that the judgement only focused on financial autonomy,” he said.

Laja Adeoye, public affairs commentator, argued that the question of who conducts local government elections needs to be addressed urgently. He noted that the ruling would not make any sense if the elections are still conducted the way it is done presently.

“Should the state continue to conduct these elections, or should the responsibility be transferred to INEC? Granting INEC this responsibility would guarantee full autonomy and enable the people to choose their local leaders freely,” Adeoye said.

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Political analyst, Kunle Okunade said there was abuse of the practice of federalism by the state governors with the present situation, adding that the ruling gave the federal government ample opportunity to control the grassroots politically which is very detrimental to our democracy.

Bode George, Ibori, others react to judgement

In the last few days, the judgement has elicited jubilation from local government officials, and residents in several states across the country. Many people said the ruling was long overdue and the best for the nation’s democracy.

There are those who believe that the judgement was in conflict with the 1999 Constitution and could be an invitation for chaos.

Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State applauded the judgement of the Supreme Court. He however, blamed lingering litigation for frustrating plans to conduct council elections in Anambra State.

He submitted that the Supreme Court is the final authority that states must respect.

“As a Democrat, I believe in the rule of law. You know that once the Supreme Court has spoken it has spoken,” he said.

Gbenga Daniel, former governor of Ogun State and the senator representing Ogun East Senatorial District, said the constitutional resolution was long overdue because the local government administration is closest to the grassroots and they should have the capacity to impact directly on the lives of the people through the initiation of life-changing programmes and projects.”

But former governor of Delta State, James Onanefe Ibori, seems to share a different view on the issue and disagreed with the judgement.

Ibori said that the Supreme Court’s ruling, granting financial autonomy to councils in Nigeria was a recipe for chaos.

Ibori, who made the observation while reacting to the landmark judgment on his X (former twitter) handle, said that the judgment has dealt a severe setback on the principle of federalism as defined by section 162(3) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

He noted that the section expressly provides thus: “Any amount standing to the credit of the Federation Account shall be distributed among the Federal and State Governments and the Local Government Councils in each state on such terms and in such manner as may be prescribed by the National Assembly”. Sections 6 provide further clarity on the subject matter.

“(6) Each State shall maintain a special account to be called ‘State Joint Local Government Account’ into which shall be paid all allocations to the Local Government Councils of the state from the Federation Account and from the Government of the State.”

Similarly, Kwara State People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Chairman, Babatunde Muhammed said the judgement was long expected, noting that there is no council election in his in the last five years.

He said: “In Kwara State now, for the past five years, our highly respected Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq’s government has refused to conduct local government elections and you can see what we are saying”.

Lawal Tunde, a civil rights activist, said the judgement was a step in the right direction and what was needed, considering how state governments were manipulating funds meant for councils.

He however, expressed concerns on states implementation and abiding by the ruling of the apex court.

“I was happy when I heard the ruling; the third tier of government is suffering; many state governors just collect councils’ allocations and sit on it.

“That is why if you go to many states there is nothing happening at the local government, most projects are from the state. Common water they can’t provide for their people,” Tunde said.

Similarly. Adeoye further pointed out that by detaching local governments from the Joint Accounts with State governments (JAAC) rapid development is now more likely.

He stressed that to ensure accountability, anti-graft agencies must maintain close monitoring and scrutiny over the 774 Local Governments, compared to the 36 State Governors.

“This is crucial to prevent rebellion, insubordination, and political crises between State governments and Local Government chairmen, particularly since funds will now be directly allocated to them for the first time since 1999,” he said.

Olabode George, a chieftain of the PDP, said the Supreme Court has started the revolution, noting that it is not only victory for democracy but a big boost for Nigeria’s political and economic development.

He further pointed out that the country must be immediately restructured after the apex court ruling.

“It is not only victory for democracy but a big boost for Nigeria’s political and economic development. The apex court was precise and unambiguous in its verdict:

“The Allocations to Local Governments must be paid directly from the Federation Account to councils governed by democratically-elected officials,” he said.