Imperatives of autonomy for local councils

Of all the recommendations in the reports presented by the Senate Committee on Constitution Review and their House of Reps counterpart, autonomy for local governments was of great concern to Nigerians. The Senate public hearing held across the six geopolitical zones and public people’s session conducted by the House of Reps last year in the […]

Of all the recommendations in the reports presented by the Senate Committee on Constitution Review and their House of Reps counterpart, autonomy for local governments was of great concern to Nigerians. The Senate public hearing held across the six geopolitical zones and public people’s session conducted by the House of Reps last year in the 360 federal constituencies of the country, attested to the fact that majority of Nigerians were evidently for LG autonomy.
However, at the end of voting on each items, the Red Chamber dropped the clause for the proposed financial autonomy meant to abolish the joint state/local government account and allow the local councils to get direct funding from the federation account. On their part, members of the Green Chamber unanimously voted in favour of the abolition of the joint account in line with the aspirations of the people.
While many commended members of the House of Representatives for taking into cognizance the views of the people as reflected in the public sessions they conducted, in arriving at their decision on LG autonomy, the Senate was heavily condemned for voting against the proposal.  
For instance, a pressure group under the aegis of Progressive Anambra Youths (PAY), in conjunction with Newbreed Youth Organization (NYO), said it was going to mobilize over one million Nigerian youths against the Senate, should the Senators continue to stand on the way of LG autonomy. They gave applause to House of Reps members, maintaining that their action was in accordance with the yearnings of the masses.
In a statement signed by the National President of Newbreed Youth Organization, Comrade Okafor Nonso Smart and National Secretary, Mr. Chika Nath Nwakwo-Arinze, the group had given the Senate up till 14th of September this year, to reverse its decision or contend with over one million youths taking over the National Assembly.
The governors’ push against granting fiscal independence to the LGs is basically to ensure that they continue to emasculate the third tier of government to their own advantage.   
Senator Odion Ugbesia is the Senator representing Edo Central senatorial district and a member of the Senate Constitution Review Committee observed that  the Governors’ Forum ‘is not known to the Nigerian constitution, but still determines the shape and direction of Nigerian politics because the governors have assumed so many powers not envisaged in the constitution. Why have they become so powerful? Because they control the political processes, political parties are under their whims and caprices, they have so much money’.
The autonomy bill’s sponsor, Senator Nurudeen Abatemi-Usman, noted that the operation of the state/local government joint account as currently practiced was an aberration that must be corrected in the interest of Nigerians. He equally said that he was prompted to put up the bill so as to free local governments from the stranglehold and claws of the state governors.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) legislator representing Yewa South/Ipokia Federal Constituency of Ogun State, said: “This is what our people want; we conducted a People’s Public Session all over the federation on November 10, 2012. The result of that session showed that Nigerians voted overwhelmingly for local government autonomy. As their representatives, we merely endorsed their wish by granting autonomy to local governments.”
 All hope is not lost on the issue of local government autonomy. Since the House of Reps passed its own version, there are chances of it still scaling through at the conference session, where the committees of the two chambers will meet to harmonize their differences before the final passage by the National Assembly.  
The fear again is the provision of the constitution which made it mandatory for 2/3 of the 36 State Houses of Assembly to approve each item passed by the Federal Legislature before it can have the force of law.  Will the governors sit down and watch the state assemblies that are believed to be under their control give approval to LG autonomy which they are vehemently opposed to?
Much as the lawmakers would want to remain loyal to the governors for the role they may have played in their electoral victories, they must know that it is equally important to protect the interest of the populace, who gave them (the legislators) the mandate to represent them at the parliamentary arm of government. The granting of financial autonomy to local council is a necessary option to open the door of rapid development at the grassroots level.
Jegede wrote from Abuja