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State Governors To Deliberate On Court Ruling On LG Autonomy

Published

5 months ago

Jul 12, 2024.

Eko Hot Blog reports that State governors will be meeting next week to deliberate on the recent Supreme Court ruling regarding Local Government Autonomy, announced AbdulRazaq AbdulRahman, the chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and the Governor of Kwara State.

The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that all federal allocations for local government councils should be paid directly into their accounts, a significant change from the current practice where most states operate a joint account with local governments.

Justice Emmanuel Agim, who led a seven-member panel, emphasized that local government allocations should be paid directly into separate accounts belonging to each local government.

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Following a meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa on Friday, Governor AbdulRahman described the ruling as a significant relief for governors. However, he indicated that he and his counterparts would convene next week to discuss the decision and formulate a response.

He noted that many people are unaware of the challenges faced by state governors, especially in terms of supporting Local Government Areas. The upcoming meeting will address these issues and determine the way forward in light of the Supreme Court’s decision.

State Governors LG Autonomy

“We welcome the ruling of the Supreme Court. Compliance is a given, and our Attorney Generals have applied for the enrollment order, which we’ll study carefully.

“But by and large, governors are happy with the devolution of power with respect to local government autonomy. It relieves the burden on governors. Our people really don’t know how much states expend in bailing out local governments, and that’s the issue there,” the NGF Chairman told State House Correspondents.

The governor of Kwara discussed the impact of the apex court ruling on his state, emphasizing that it would require the local governments to take charge of managing their own affairs, particularly in terms of paying salaries to employees and traditional leaders.

He said, “It’s not going to affect Kwara State. We’ve never tampered with local government funds. So it’s going to continue. What the local governments have to do is manage themselves, especially with the oncoming minimum wage, to manage their affairs and make sure salaries are paid, traditional rulers get their 5%, and those are the main issues.