Oyo State Governor, Mr Seyi Makinde has criticised what he described as the double stance approach of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu with regards to the dicey issue of direct allocation of funds from the Federation Account to the Local Government Councils in the country.
Makinde pointedly said that President Tinubu’s threat of an Executive Order to compel State Governors to comply with the Local Government autonomy misses the point.
The Governor who particularly picked holes in the threat by President Tinubu to issue an Executive Order to compel state governors to comply during a media chat, emphasised that there are so many inconsistencies over the matter.
Makinde specifically said that the creation of Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) in Lagos State cannot be said to be consistent with local government autonomy.
Makinde said; “What are you saying when you have created LCDAs? Are you not saying that the local government should be under the state? So how come now suddenly…?
“It should not be a situation of if you are at the sub-national level, you take one position and while you are at the federal level, you take another position. I don’t think that should be it.
“So, I know there is a Supreme Court judgment on this matter, but some of these things may not be resolved strictly through the judicial process. Some, you have to negotiate a political solution and things like that.
“I think this will fall into that category where people should honestly come to the table and say we have issues with this area or that area. We can’t keep shifting,” he said.
President Tinubu had on December 19, declared that he may be compelled to issue an Executive Order to ensure direct allocations of funds to local governments if State governors refuse to comply with a Supreme Court ruling affirming financial autonomy for the third tier of government in the country.
Tinubu, who sounded the warning at the 15th National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC), which held at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja, had earlier sounded a similar warning at the APC’s 14th National Caucus meeting, during which he stressed that local government autonomy cannot be achieved without a funded mandate.
The president said that non-compliance by state governments could force the federal government to directly release funds to local councils through the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).
In the words of Tinubu; “If you wait for my Executive Order, because I have the knife, I have the yam, I will cut it. I’m just being very respectful and understanding with my governors. Otherwise, if you don’t start to implement it, FAAC after FAAC you will see.
“The ultimate goal is our Supreme Court. We have to comply. We have to respect the judgment”.
While underlining his administration’s commitment to enforcing local government financial autonomy, Tinubu stressed the importance of complying with the Supreme Court judgement and warned that continued violations could trigger the federal government’s intervention.
The Supreme Court in a landmark judgement on July 11, 2024, upheld a suit filed by the federal government which sought to enforce financial independence for local governments.
In a unanimous decision, a seven-member panel of justices held that it was unconstitutional for state governments to retain or manage funds meant for local councils.
The apex court therefore ordered that allocations from the Federation Account be paid directly to local governments, as provided under Section 162 (5–8) of the Constitution.
However, despite the ruling, many state governments have continued to channel the funds of local government councils through joint accounts, a practice the Supreme Court considered unlawful.
