Former presidential aide, Okoi Obono-Obla has called on the Nigerian Senate to discountenance the bill proposed by Senator Sani Musa of Niger State to establish the National Local Government Independent Electoral Commission.
This is even as moves are being made to conduct elections for Council leaderships across the country following recent judicial approbation by the Supreme Court.
In a statement released in Calabar, Obono-Obla said the attempt by some people to federalise the conduct of local government elections should not be entertained.
He contended that if the local governments are a tier of government and autonomous, then they should be allowed to conduct their own elections and do whatever they want.
“Local governments are a tier of government that has been given judicial approbation recently by the Supreme Court of Nigeria in the celebrated case of Attorney-General of the Federation versus 36 Governors.
“I cannot understand the rationale behind the Bill tabled before the Senate by Senator Sani Musa of Niger State, for the establishment of the National Local Government Independent Electoral Commission, which would be vested with the power to conduct local government elections in the country.
“The federal government is already overburdened with so many responsibilities that are making it clay-footed and inefficient and I therefore do not see any reasons whatsoever why it should again be saddled with the responsibility for the conduct of Local Government Elections in 774 local government areas in the country.”
He called for the abrogation of state Assemblies if they are unable to perform their basic functions of making progressive laws for the peace, stability and good governance of the states.
“If local governments can not regulate themselves responsibly, then they shouldn’t exist.”
The lawyer and public activist advocated that power to conduct Local Government Elections should remain with the States’ Electoral Commission, cautioning, however, that these commissions must be democratized and free from the control of state governors.
Obono-Obla advised the State Houses of Assembly to “awake from their present state of self-induced and inflicted comatose and free themselves from the control and freedom of magistral and dictatorial governors”.
He cautioned that the local government system in Nigeria should not be federalized under any guise.
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