Group calls for accountability as S’court grant LG financial autonomy

By Abubakar Yunusa

The Nigerian Ethnic Nationality Youth Leaders Council Worldwide has praised the Supreme Court’s ruling that grants full financial autonomy to local governments.
The youth leaders, representing various groups such as the Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities Youth Leaders, Northern Youth Congress, Yoruba Council of Youths Worldwide, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide, Middle-Belt Youth Council, and North-East Youth Assembly, voiced their approval in a statement.
The statement was signed by Vice President Comrade Balarabe Rufai and Publicity Secretary Mazi Okwu Nnabuike.
Describing the ruling as a “victory for the grassroots,” they called for accountability from governors who have managed local government funds for the past 25 years.
“The framers of the constitution intended local governments to be closer to the people and to bring development to their doorsteps, especially in areas like health, rural roads, and water,” they noted.
“However, governors have turned LGs into a drain pipe, with illegal caretakers doing nothing but signing off allocations for the governors.”
They stressed, “A time of reckoning has come; they should account for the huge sums of money running into trillions of Naira.”
The group also emphasized, “The Supreme Court has ended decades of anomaly and illegality. We expect the governors to accept the judgement in good faith.”
They urged the Federal Government to ensure compliance with the ruling starting from this month’s allocation and called on local government chairmen to justify the judgement by initiating and completing projects.