There is widespread panic in at least 21 states following the Supreme Court’s ruling which halted allocations to local governments without democratically elected chairmen. This landmark judgement, delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, endorsed full autonomy for the 774 local governments, ending years of struggle for local government autonomy.
The court mandated that funds from the federation account be paid directly to the local governments’ bank accounts, barring state governors from receiving, tampering with, or withholding these funds. The ruling also prohibited governors from dissolving democratically elected local government officials, deeming such actions unconstitutional.
In a unanimous decision, the seven-judge panel agreed with the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Olasunkanmi, that local governments are recognized as the third tier of government under Nigeria’s Constitution. The Supreme Court upheld the argument that while the Constitution allows governors to receive money on behalf of local governments, it does not permit them to spend it on their behalf.
The Supreme Court ordered the Federation Account to withhold funds from local governments without democratically elected officials. This judgement affects local governments across 21 states, including Jigawa, Rivers, Anambra, Kwara, Imo, Zamfara, Benue, Bauchi, Plateau, Abia, Enugu, Katsina, Kano, Sokoto, Yobe, Ondo, Osun, Delta, Akwa-Ibom, and Cross River.
Some states had scheduled local government elections, while others had no immediate plans for such polls. The ruling has jolted the governors of these states, with Anambra State governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, announcing an emergency meeting of the Governors Forum. Despite being guilty of not conducting council polls, Soludo praised the court’s decision, highlighting the importance of accountability and transparency in public resource utilization at all levels.
The outcome of the governors’ meeting was not available at the time of this report. Meanwhile, the ruling has elicited diverse reactions from Nigerians across the country.