The Chairman of Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazak of Kwara State says the Supreme Court judgment on local government autonomy is a significant relief to the state governors.
A seven -member panel of the court led by Justice Emmanuel Agim, had on Thursday ruled that local government allocation should henceforth be paid directly to them.
Speaking on Friday shortly after a meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the Villa, Governor AbdulRazaq , said it is a significant relief for state governors.
He, however, said he and his counterparts would meet next week to discuss the judgment and formulate a response.
According to him, many are unaware of the challenges being faced by state governors, particularly in terms of rescuing Local government Areas.
“We welcome the ruling of the Supreme Court. And our Attorneys-General have applied for the enrollment order, which we’ll study carefully.
“But by and large, governors are happy with the devolution of power with respect to local government autonomy.
“It relieves the burden on governors. Our people really don’t know how much states expend in bailing out local governments, and that’s the issue there,” he said.
On the impact of the apex court ruling on his state, he saud that it would require the local governments to take charge of managing their own affairs, particularly in terms of paying salaries to employees and traditional leaders.
“It’s not going to affect Kwara State. We’ve never tampered with local government funds.
“So it’s going to continue. What the local governments have to do is manage themselves, especially with the oncoming minimum wage, to manage their affairs and make sure salaries are paid, traditional rulers get their 5%, and those are the main issues.
“Like I said, we haven’t seen the enrollment of the court order and so we really don’t know what is in there.
“The Forum will meet next Wednesday, to look at the issue wholly and then come up with a resolution on that,” the governor explained.
(vitalnewsngr.com)
