Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo has succeeded in rolling back the gains of the Supreme Court decision on local government autonomy as his executive bill – Anambra State Local Government Administration Bill, 2024 – was last Thursday enacted into law. Succinctly, the law empowers his government to deduct funds designated for local governments into a central purse which will be under its control. In Section 13(1), the law mandates the establishment of a “State Joint Local Government Account” which will hold federal allocations to LGAs. Section 13(2) gives the state government the authority to distribute these funds.

Additionally, Section 14(3) stipulates that each LGA must remit a percentage of their allocation to this account within two working days. Moreover, Section 14(4) states that if the state receives the LGA’s allocation, it must deduct the specified percentage before disbursing the remaining funds. Section 16 mandates LGAs to remit 20% of their monthly allocations within two working days of receipt. Operationally, the local government consolidated account will be administered by the local government chairmen now named mayors, the Accountant General of the Local Government, three chairmen of local governments, commissioner in-charge of local governments, the chairman of ASUBEB and executive secretary of local government staff pensions board.

The Special Adviser to Governor Soludo on Political Matters, Dr Alex Obiogbolu, said the state government would use the funds to administer common services which include payment of salaries, allowances, gratuities and pensions of workers and retirees under the local government service commission, provision and maintenance of primary, adult and vocational education including all salaries, allowances, gratuities and pensions payable in that regard, among others.

Towards stopping this, on Wednesday, October 9, 2024, the Senate moved in solidarity with local government autonomy, resolving that “All states and local governments to fully comply with the recent Supreme Court judgment on disbursement and utilisation of funds allocated to all local governments in Nigeria; “That the Senate ensures alterations to relevant provisions of the constitution to provide for the full autonomy for the local governments in Nigeria.” Yet, the law came to be and has become an aberration which directly contravenes the Supreme Court’s directive against state interference with local government finances. It obviously ignores the July 11, 2024, Supreme Court judgment affirming the financial autonomy of Nigeria’s 774 local government councils wherein Justice Emmanuel Agim stated, on behalf of his colleagues, that “… justice demands that local governments allocations from the federation account should henceforth be paid directly to the local governments.” It therefore abolished the state-controlled joint accounts which the new law is enthroning.

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Governor Soludo, through the Anambra State Commissioner for Information, Dr Law Mefor, has doubled down in defence of the new law. “Is it the Supreme Court that should donate power or the constitution? Does the Supreme Court make laws?” Mefor questioned, suggesting that the court’s judgment was merely an interpretation of the constitution and did not override it.

According to Mefor, Section 7 of the 1999 Constitution empowers State Houses of Assembly to enact laws regarding the administration and financial regulations of LGAs. He argued that the bill aligns with the assembly’s constitutional mandate, urging those who oppose it to challenge it in court.

What the new law clearly showcases is the overbearing attitude of governors who have a history of usurping the powers of local government councils, thereby depriving them of the use of funds allocated to them from the federation account, through state-controlled joint accounts. They don’t want to let go of their easily accessible “central pocket.”

We at Daily Trust regret that despite the sharp criticism by stakeholders over its apparent intent to circumvent the Supreme Court’s decision, both the executive and legislative branches of the state pushed the law through. It is an enactment and display of impunity. Obviously, this is a systematic effort to financially weaken the 21 local government areas and enthrone fiscal irresponsibility and disregard for local governance autonomy.

We also believe that the law is a bad precedent as no law can usurp the provisions of the constitution or the pronunciations of the Supreme Court. If this is allowed to stand, the Anambra governor would have succeeded in creating the ignoble path which other state governors may follow. And it would have inadvertently killed the pursuit for full autonomy of the local governments while appearing to be abiding by the Supreme Court judgment.

In fact, it sends the wrong signals to the efforts for strict adherence to the rule of law. Clearly, it is an affront and direct assault on the autonomy of the 21 LGAs, and a reversal of the progress achieved by the Supreme Court ruling in Suit No: SC/343/2024.

We also affirm that the law, as passed by the state House of Assembly, is inimical to the development and progress of the rural communities, and underlining great disservice to the people of the state. Being a deliberate move to frustrate the LG autonomy as declared by the Supreme Court through the back door, we call on all men and women of goodwill who value the development of grassroots democracy in Nigeria to prevail on Governor Soludo to jettison the implementation of the new law. (Daily Trust Editorial)