Senior figures in Nigeria’s local government system and the legal community have called on state governors to rally behind President Bola Tinubu to ensure the full implementation of financial autonomy for local councils.
The secretary general of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Mohammed Abubakar, alongside the human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong, said governors must respect a Supreme Court judgment granting local governments direct access to their statutory allocations.
Their intervention followed remarks by Tinubu at the 15th National Executive Committee meeting of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abuja, where the president urged governors to comply with the court’s decision. He warned that continued resistance could force him to issue an executive order mandating that funds from the Federation Account be paid directly to local councils.
The president’s stance is rooted in a judgment delivered by the Supreme Court on 11 July 2024, which upheld a suit by the federal government seeking to enforce the financial independence of local governments.
Abubakar said the ruling was unambiguous and binding, insisting that council funds must no longer pass through state governments. He described Tinubu’s public insistence on compliance as evidence of political resolve.
“The Supreme Court is very clear that the funds should be paid to the local governments directly. The president should go ahead and do the needful. We are in full support of that,” he said. “For the president to say this openly shows that he means business. He has demonstrated that he is fully committed to the implementation of local government autonomy.”
He added that all stakeholders, particularly governors, should support the president’s position and allow the reform to take effect.
Effiong echoed the call, stressing that Supreme Court judgments are final and must be enforced. He said responsibility for implementation rested squarely with the attorney general of the federation and the president.
“It is a Supreme Court judgment and it must be enforced. The attorney general has the responsibility to enforce it, and the president should ensure its enforcement,” he said.
Describing opposition from some governors as “troubling”, Effiong accused them of undermining democratic norms. “The position of the Supreme Court is clear and the governors should comply with its decision,” he said.
