President of the National Assembly, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has said the legislative body will enforce the Supreme Court ruling which granted financial autonomy to the 774 local government areas in the country.
He said this while speaking with reporters at the Presidential Villa on Thursday. He declared that the ruling will make real elections to take place at the local government level.
Recall that the apex court ruled, on Thursday, that the Federal Government should henceforth pay allocations directly to local government areas from the Federation Account.
The Supreme Court also ruled that caretaker committee arrangement for local government areas is unconstitutional and illegal.
Akpabio said: “It is a great thing that the Supreme Court has done the needful. Now we have to go back and think, working with the AGF’s office and the Parliament, to see how we can ensure that there is real election at the local government level.
“I think once that is done, everybody will have confidence.
“This is progress for democracy and that is how it should be. So, we congratulate the justices of the Supreme Court and we in the Parliament are determined to make sure there’s enforceability.”
Akpabio also commended the President Bola Tinubu administration for taking the issue of local autonomy to the apex court.
“Recall that the request was placed before the courts by the AGF because the FG, through President Bola Tinubu, feels strongly about separation of powers and the need for autonomy of all arms of government.
“And so for us in the Legislature, the Supreme Court has spoken and we have no option than to abide by the supreme court ruling.
“So, I will just call on all states of the federation to respect what the Supreme Court has done. Then we will go back to the Legislature and see where we can dot the i’s and cross the t’s to ensure the full implementation.
“Because you know the words of the Supreme Court are like the words of the king. They cannot go down to the ground without implementation.
“So I think this is a great day for democracy, and I congratulate the president for this initiative.
“And I know that all Nigerians now know that local government administration is an arm of government meant for the grassroots and their money should be for the grassroots.
“And definitely, local governments can now undertake projects on their own. So it is a great day for democracy and it is the beginning of great things to come.
“I have not seen the judgment. I will study the judgment. But at the same time I believe there should be impartial elections at the local government level so that all the political parties can participate.
“At the moment, there is a lot of lethargy and nonchalance by many political parties whose parties are not in power at the state level. They hardly partake in local government elections because of the perceived bandwagon effect and all that,” Akpabio said.
