Lateef Fagbemi, Nigeria’s Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, has warned against violating the Supreme Court‘s ruling on local government autonomy and promised to take action against the reckless council officials.
The warning was issued by Fagbemi on Thursday in Abuja during a symposium for journalists covering the courts.
Although grassroots governance has “suffered a lot” in the past, the AGF commented that “life will come back to the local governments” once the ruling on local government autonomy is implemented.
“Long-term neglect has caused enough suffering for people at the grassroots level. The goal of President Ahmed Bola Tinubu’s (GCFR) administration is to make up for historical wrongs and elevate the nation in the eyes of the international community. Any attempt to undermine the endeavour will therefore be met with force and treated accordingly. Fagbemi reminded the audience that local government chairmen and councillors should remember that the governors enjoy immunity while they (LG officials) do not.
“They must decide between running the risk of going to jail or handling the local government’s cash however they see fit. They have complete control over the decision. Activities like building or renovating roads, schools, hospitals, etc. must be returned to the local governments. They can choose to tamper with the money and wind up in jail, or they can sign their names in gold letters. Local governments need to be given new life!”
The Supreme Court upheld local governments’ financial independence in a historic ruling in July. Governors were prevented from managing local government funding by that ruling.
To increase local government autonomy nationwide, it also required the AGF to pay local government allocations straight to their accounts.
