Nwoye Calls for Enforcement of Local Govt Autonomy Ruling

The lawmaker representing Anambra North in the National Assembly, Tony Nwoye, has called for the enforcement of the recent Supreme Court verdict granting financial autonomy to local governments.

The ruling, delivered in July, granted autonomy to all 774 local government areas in Nigeria following a lawsuit filed by the federal government through the Attorney General of the Federation.

On Wednesday, Nwoye urged the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, and the Attorney General of the Federation to ensure that the verdict is enforced. He highlighted the importance of state and local governments complying with the ruling, particularly regarding the management of funds allocated directly to local governments.

“We are calling on the Attorney General and security agencies to ensure the Supreme Court judgement is respected,” Nwoye stated during a Senate session.

Following Nwoye’s appeal, the Senate passed a resolution demanding immediate compliance with the Supreme Court’s ruling, particularly regarding local government financial accounts. The Senate also resolved to amend sections of the Constitution to grant full autonomy to local government administrations across the country.

The resolutions were announced by Deputy Senate President Senator Jibrin Barau after a closed-door session in which lawmakers debated attempts by some state governments to circumvent the court ruling. Nwoye had raised concerns about state governments using their state Houses of Assembly to pass laws undermining the financial autonomy granted to local governments.

Co-sponsored by 12 senators, the motion accused some state governments of enacting laws requiring local governments to remit a significant portion of their federal allocations to state-controlled accounts. These laws use terms such as “state/LGA joint account” and “Local Government Joint Security Trust account” to limit local government control over their funds, which violates the Supreme Court ruling.

The Senate’s resolution aims to protect local government autonomy and prevent state governments from subverting the court’s judgement.