ABUJA/Nigeria: The Supreme Court has prohibited the 36 state governors from retaining or utilizing funds intended for the 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Nigeria.
The court ruled that it is illegal and unconstitutional for governors to continue receiving and appropriating funds allocated to LGAs within their states. It described this practice, ongoing for over two decades, as a clear violation of Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Emmanuel Agim stated, “No House of Assembly of any state has the power to make laws that could, in any manner, interfere with monies meant for the LGAs.”
Emphasizing the necessity for LGAs to be governed by democratically elected officials, the Supreme Court ordered that funds meant for the LGAs must be directly paid to them from the federation account. “Demands of justice require a progressive interpretation of the law. It is the position of this court that the federation can pay LGA allocations to the LGAs directly or pay them through the states. In this case, since paying them through states has not worked, justice of this case demands that LGA allocations from the federation account should henceforth be paid directly to the LGAs,” the apex court held.
The court also declared the appointment of caretaker committees by governors to run the affairs of the LGAs as unconstitutional, asserting that the 36 states are obligated to ensure democratic governance at the third tier of government.
This landmark judgment followed a suit filed by the Federal Government to secure financial autonomy for the LGAs.
