President Muhammadu Buhari says his administration will support a constitutional amendment to free local governments from the stranglehold of states and better the lot of Nigerians at the community level.

The President was speaking when he received the leadership of the Association of Local Governments in Nigeria (ALGON) in Abuja on Thursday.

He said that a constitutional amendment was urgently required to clearly define the relationship among the three tiers of government.

He described the frosty relationship between states and local government as “a very serious constitutional problem”.

He said: “The relationship between the three tiers of government is not a very nice one, especially that between the local governments and the states.

“The states feel like they own the local government, if they are of the same party. It is worse if they are not.

“This is a very serious constitutional problem and unless there is absolute clarity and transparency, the relationship will continue to be exploited against the interest of the ordinary people of the country.”

President Buhari advised the ALGON executives to hold consultations with their people and lawyers with a view to presenting a bill that will seek a constitutional amendment to free the councils from the stranglehold of the states. (Channels TV)

•Photo shows President Buhari.