By Stephen Adeleye.
The Senator representing Kofi West Senatorial District, Sunday Karimi, has assured that the National Assembly will enact laws to enforce Supreme Court’s ruling on local government financial autonomy, backing President Bola Tinubu’s stance.
Karimi, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Services, while speaking to constituents during the yuletide break, recalled the July 25, 2024 Supreme Court ruling directing seamless federal funds allocation to Nigeria’s 774 councils.
The vibrant Senator criticized governors disregarding the July 2024 Supreme Court judgment directing direct federal funds to councils, calling it “unconstitutional” and aimed at “strengthening grassroots democracy”.
He warned defaulting governors face prosecution and punishment as parliament prioritizes the issue.
He said the parliament will enact relevant laws to compel strict adherence to the Supreme Court judgment on fiscal autonomy for the third tier of government.
He quoted the judgement to have said that “state governors’ control over local government resources as unconstitutional, while also voiding caretaker committees as illegal.”
Senator Karimi observed that the judgement aimed to “strengthen grassroots democracy and governance by ensuring that allocations go directly to elected officials, without state interference.”
He recalled that the overall aim of the ruling is also to improve service delivery at the critical local government level of the governance pyramid.
Despite this very clear, explicit and unambiguous declaration by the highest court in the land, however, Karimi observed that some states have continued to disregard and disrespect the ruling.
“Cognisant of the errant conduct of some state governors on the issue, President Tinubu warned at the recent National Executive Committee meeting of the All Progressives Congress, (APC) a fortnight ago, that he may be compelled to issue an Executive Order to whip defaulting governors into line.”
Karimi observed that the Presidenthad had exercised restraint for so long with non-conformists, despite the fact that he has the powers to impose on them to do what is right.
“The National Assembly will prioritise the matter of the non-adherence of certain governors across the broad spectrum, to the subsisting Supreme Court ruling on local government financial autonomy.
“We will back the President with relevant laws which will be retroactively effective.
“The laws will track the kleptomania and squandermania of governors who have been looting the commonwealth of the people of Nigeria.
“They will be prosecuted, compelled to make returns and punished for undermining the wellbeing of the generality of the people, by wilfully stealing what rightly belongs to them,” Karimi reiterated.
Karimi emphasised that trillions of naira had been pilfered from the resources of Nigerians by gluttonous governors.
He added: “There is general consensus that no administration in contemporary history has made as much resources available to states and local government areas as the Tinubu government, but the people are barely feeling the impact in many places.
“During the screening of service chiefs recently, the chief of Defence staff noted that not allowing LGAs to function has contributed to insecurity in the country, creating lots of ungoverned space in the country.
“Some governors, their godfathers and members of their cabals, put a knife on local government funds every month, as their own “dessert” after meals.”
That is why the local government system is dysfunctional and incapable of rendering the most basic services to their constituents.
“It is the reason many parts of the country have become dangerous ungoverned spaces and operational bases for terrorists.
“Governors who have been wilfully denying the people the resources for development, their aiders and abetters, and their rabid defenders in the media will meet their comeuppance when the parliament enables the appropriate legislations.”
Karimi emphasised that some States of the federation, are outrightly stealing the LGAs allocation.
“While local government funds are transferred to the LGAs bank accounts, the state then operates voucher racketeering schemes, where documents are processed for fictitious jobs that are never executed, while the relevant supervisory councillors and chairmen are compelled to sign and approve such fraudulent vouchers which run into billions of naira monthly.
“No jobs are carried out, while funds are looted steadily and regularly. Chairmen dare not complain for the fear of their lives because the ruling gangs in some states are deadly. This type of fraud shouldn’t be happening in the 21st century in Nigeria,” the Senator stated.
