Nigeria CSOS situation Room and the Citizens Centre for Integrated Development and Social Rights (CCIDESOR) have called for full implementation of the Supreme Court Judgment on local government autonomy in the country.
The Groups have equally canvassed for direct payment of local government allocations from the Federation Account to the Councils, constitutional reforms to eliminate ambiguities surrounding the Joint Account System as well as strengthening Local Government accountability architecture including transparent budgeting, open procurement systems and citizen monitoring mechanism.
Founder and CEO of the Citizens Centre for Integrated Development and Social Rights (CCIDESOR) Dr. Emeka Ononamadu made the call in his quarterly press briefing in Owerri, during which he insisted that local government Autonomy and improved Accountability would reduce corruption in the country, strengthen the local economy and reduce corruption.
According to Ononamadu, the Supreme Court Judgment on July 11, 2024, affirming the financial autonomy of local governments in the country which was consequent upon a case filed by the federal government through the Lateef Faabemi seeking to protect the local government from financial control by the state governments is a step in the right direction.
He argued that full implementation of the judgment would equally guarantee credible democratic elections at the local government level across all states.
Ononamadu who decried the serious economic and governance challenges rocking the nation and which cupiously manifests in excruciating poverty, unemployment, declining rural infrastructure and growing insecurity across many communities warned that the nation would never achieve meaningful economic recovery without empowering its local governments.
The CCIDESOR boss also took exception to the state local government Joint Account System provided for under section 162 of the Nation’s 1999 constitution as amended and dismissed it as a “structural Driver of corruption”.
He lamented that while section 7 of the constitution guarantees the existence of local governments, the joint account structure had historically enabled state governments to control, deduct and sometime divert this fund meant for local government administration.
Onunamadu listed the benefits and advantages of local government autonomy to include: economic recovery and stability in the country, job creation, delivery of essential services and reduction of insecurity.
“What remains now is strong political will to implement real reform. Local government autonomy combined with strong accountability systems will not only reduce corruption but also stimulate local economic growth, strengthen rural development and reduce insecurity across Nigeria.
For Nigeria local government reform is not merely a governance issue, it is a national development imperative”.
