President Bola Tinubu’s Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, has said that the Supreme Court’s rulingon financial autonomy for local governments takes immediate effect.
The Supreme Court ruled that state governors have been abusing their powersby withholding funds meant for local governments and ordered the federal government to withhold allocations to LGAs governed by unelected officials.
Fagbemi stated that the judgment is a significant development, dubbing it the “local government emancipation judgment” as it frees local governments from the control of state governors.
He urged local government officials to see the judgment as an opportunity to develop their areas and warned that failure to comply with it would have consequences.
The Attorney General’s statement, which comes after a meeting with President Tinubu, indicates that the federal government is committed to implementing the Supreme Court’s ruling.
The judgment is seen as a significant step towards empowering local governments and ensuring their financial autonomy, which is expected to positively impact grassroots development in Nigeria.
El-Rufai quoted a tweet from the presidency that summarised the apex court’s judgment with a terse comment saying it is God who gives and takes.
The former governor’s comment comes amid his ongoing political battle with Uba Sani, his successor in Kaduna state.
Former Delta stategovernor James Ibori has identified five errorsin the Supreme Court judgment granting financial autonomy to local governments in Nigeria.
The former governor posited that the apex court verdict contravened the principle of federalism as stated in Section 162(3) of the 1999 Constitution.
According to the Ibori, there are only two tiers of government: federal and state, while the local government is expected to operate under the state.
