From CHARLES ONYEKWERE
Apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has called on the Federal Government to withhold funds meant for local governments across the country, alleging that governors were arm-twisting the council chairmen.
The Supreme Court recently granted full financial autonomy to the 774 local governments across the country in a suit filed by the Federal Government.
Ohanaeze condemned the egregious affront to the country’s democracy and the autonomy of local government councils by governors across Nigeria.
In a statement yesterday by a factional Secretary-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Okechukwu lsiguzoro, stated that the alarm followed a revelation that state governors had colluded to subvert the very resources meant for the uplift of communities.
“These actions not only degrade our cherished democracy; rather a direct assault on the dignity and rights of the Nigerian populace.
“It is a tragic irony that these custodians of our collective governance are using their offices as instruments of oppression, effectively brutalising the 774 Local Government Areas and sapping them of their financial independence and operational integrity.
“The recent judicial mandate by the Supreme Court, which unequivocally granted full administrative and financial autonomy to local councils, is being flouted with impunity. Such conduct is a derision of the foundational tenets of our democratic framework, which relies on the co-equal functioning of the executive, legislative and judiciary branches of government.
“Ohanaeze Ndigbo cannot remain silent in the face of this monumental fraud being perpetrated through the brazen manipulation of the local government system. The imposition of puppet Chairmen, the controlling influence exerted via state-run electoral commissions, and the alarming emergence of legislation aimed at circumventing Supreme Court decisions are assaults that must be met with resolute resistance.
“The recent actions of the Anambra State House of Assembly, culminating in the passage of the ‘Anambra Local Government Administration Law 2024’ serve as a glaring example of this legislative madness. This law seeks not to empower local governance, but rather to entrench a system of coercion, compelling local governments to remit federal allocations to accounts beholden to state authorities.
“We significantly caution that signing this bill into law could irreparably damage his prospects for re-election in the forthcoming 2025 gubernatorial elections of Anambra State”, Isiguzoro said.
