A Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Anambra State, Pharm Chinedu Ikeagwuonwu Klinsmann has expressed his displeasure with the Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, for stating that granting full autonomy to Nigeria’s 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs) could lead to “humongous chaos and hinder sustainable development.”
It could be recalled that Governor Soludo made this remark on Tuesday at the Governor’s Lodge in Amawbia, Awka, after signing into law the Anambra Local Government Administration Law 2024, which the State House of Assembly passed last Thursday.
Justifying the enactment of thie law, Governor Soludo had cited Section 7 of the Constitution, which he said empowers state governments to enact laws for local government administration.
He also highlighted the importance of state oversight over LGAs.
The Governor stated that the new laws are consequential to the Supreme Court judgment and not intended to undermine it.
He said if the State House of Assembly abdicates its constitutional duty, the LGAs will have no law stipulating the use and management of their finances.
The new law requires the Anambra State Government to maintain a State Joint Local Government Account, into which all federal allocations to LGAs must be deposited.
Another section of the law compels each LGA in the state to remit a state-determined percentage to the consolidated account within two working days of receiving their allocations.
Yet another section states that when the Anambra State Government receives the LGA’s allocation on their behalf, it must deduct a specified percentage before disbursing the remaining funds to the LGAs.
Responding to this development, Klinsmann in a statement made available to Newspot on Thursday, expressed his disappointment and utter dismay at the actions of Governor Soludo.
He stated that the Federal Government’s effort to grant LGAs full autonomy, which culminated in the Supreme Court’s pronouncement to that effect, was part of a concerted effort to institute policies, programs, and reforms that would address the challenges that came with the removal of fuel subsidies.
“Reactivating the LGA system is part of efforts made to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal,” Klinsmann said.
He stressed that when LGAs were allowed to run their administration without hindrance, they would be able to create jobs, provide much-needed social amenities for their people, and secure their locality, thus allowing farmers to return to their farms.
This, he maintained, will boost the local economy, and ameliorate poverty nationwide.
Klinsmann urged state governors to support the Federal Government to bring the gains of democracy to the people at the grassroots. He admonished them to desist from attempting to drag the nation backwards.
Governor Soludo, he observed, seemed desperate in his attempt to show that the intention behind his administration’s hijack of LGA resources is good.
“If state governors’ control of LGA resources was done with good intentions when the LGA had no autonomy, why were the governors unable to develop the LGAs?
“When governors had full control of the resources and administration of LGAs, what did they do to develop them?” Klinsmann pondered.
This, he asserted, showed that the governors do not have the political will to develop LGAs that cater to the needs of the vast majority of our population who reside in rural areas.
He urged Soludo to retrace his steps and allow LGA administrations in his state to work.
“People were elected into office at the local level; they have the mandate of their people, and the law granted them autonomy to enable them to serve their people without let or hindrance,” he added, urging the governor not to impede or emasculate them.
Klinsmann urged Nigerian governors not to follow Soludo’s lead and try to seize control of LGA finances through the instrumentality of the dubious joint account or joint projects.
“They should let the LGAs be fully autonomous,” he said.
To allay fears that if left alone, LGA administrations will engage in massive corruption, Klinsmann suggested that anti-graft agencies should keep an eagle eye on LGAs.
These agencies, he posited, should investigate and diligently prosecute any LG chairman or council member who embezzles council funds.
“If there is the need for any critical project that requires the financial contribution of the state government, the two tiers of government can execute the project through a counterpart funding arrangement.
“Anything beyond that”, he declared, “will drag Nigeria back to the dark ages of state government suppressing LGAs”.
Responding to Governor Soludo’s assertion that the law he enacted does not contravene the Constitution, and that the Supreme Court pronouncement that affirmed LGA autonomy did not preclude the state assembly from enacting laws or the state government engaging in joint ventures, Klinsmann stated, “We don’t need the Supreme Court to tell us everything.
“Before the emergence of civil law and the Constitution, there were natural laws. We do not need to wait for a Supreme Court pronouncement to do the right thing.”
He noted that in any case, Soludo’s Anambra state administrative law
directly contravenes the Supreme Court’s directive against state interference with local government finances.
Klinsmann added that the law contradicts the July 11, 2024, Supreme Court judgment affirming the financial autonomy of Nigeria’s 774 local government councils.
The APC chieftain opined that if the Anambra LG law is allowed to stand, Governor Soludo would have succeeded in creating the ignoble path which other state governors may follow.
He added that what the governor is trying to do is an affront and direct assault on the autonomy of the 21 LGAs of the state, and a reversal of the progress achieved by the Supreme Court ruling in Suit No: SC/343/2024.
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