President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appealed to state governments to prioritise the needs of local communities by ensuring accountability and efficiency in the administration of local government councils.
The president’s plea came Thursday as the Supreme Court gave the 36 state governors a seven-day ultimatum within which to file their respective defence in the suit brought against them by the federal government, seeking full autonomy for the 774 Local Government Councils in the country.
The apex court ordered the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, who filed the suit on behalf of the federal government, to, upon receipt, reply the defendants’ processes within two days.
…Tinubu’s plea
Making a plea while receiving in audience the leadership of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, President Tinubu said: “We are running a constitutional democracy.
I will appeal to you to summon the governors. I am doing my very best to enhance the revenue base of the country. They must equally be sympathetic, and they must urgently consider the needs of the local people.
“People reside in the local communities. That is where they work, farm, and live. If the local governments are not effective in delivering services; as leaders, we must not hang on to the numbers. We have 774 local government areas, but are they truly effective? Do they solve problems for Nigerians? Do they coordinate development programming with the state and federal governments?
“Who is being held accountable for the performance of the 774 local governments? Maybe we should look at recalibrating. What was good four years ago may not be good today. When we want the votes, we go to the locals; when we get the votes, we move to and focus on Abuja.”
Highlighting the significance of education in nation building, the president described the situation of out-of-school children in parts of Nigeria as unacceptable.
“The question of out-of-school children is unacceptable. Education is a tool against poverty, and that is what brought many of us here. We must use our education to serve the people and improve their conditions. We must develop the backbone of Nigeria’s economy, which is the education system. We will collaborate with you on this intensively.
“We are still building Nigeria, and I am glad that you have emphasized the need for development. The infrastructure decay is unacceptable, and the level of poverty in the north is unacceptable. We must eliminate the source of these trends,” President Tinubu said.
On security, he commended the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, for his efforts.
“Everybody wants to be secure, and we need to invest more in technology. We will do it, I promise you. We will put our heart and soul into ensuring that Nigeria is secure and its citizens are protected.
“The AKK project, the dredging of the River Niger, and improving port access and infrastructure nationwide, in order to shorten travel time, will make us more prosperous as a nation. We have to fight insecurity so that people can make a decent living anywhere they live,” he said.
Tinubu also addressed economic development and livestock management.
On this, he said: “Animal husbandry has been a huge problem for Nigeria. Dairy farms can grow our economy significantly. Talk to the governors and tell them to make more land available. Talk to herders to collaborate with the states. The lands are with the states. We are ready to put funds in place to help the herders. We can do it, and we will be able to do it. If the Brazilians and the Dutch are doing it, we can also do it.”
The president also used the occasion to appeal for national unity and continued support for his government as it solves decades-long challenges confronting the populace.
“As long as we are together, and we have to be together, there is strength in our diversity. Our strength and opportunity are built into our population. I thank the cabinet members for their efforts, but I will relieve any of them of their duties anytime I feel that they are failing Nigerians,” he said.
He directed the establishment of a committee to follow up on the issues raised at the meeting and assigned the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, to lead the follow-up efforts.
“We must tick the boxes on all that we must quickly do,” he said.
…ACF lauds FG
In his remarks, leader of the delegation and Chairman ACF Board of Trustees, Barrister Bashir Dalhatu, congratulated President Tinubu on his first year in office and expressed the Forum’s appreciation for his achievements and service to the country.
”Your Excellency may wish to recall the invitation extended to you, which you graciously honoured and which led to a robust interactive conference at the Arewa House on the 19th of October, 2022.
”We make bold to say that Your Excellency’s vigorous, firm, and credible commitments and assurances to Northerners, made at that meeting and during the course of your election campaign, proved to be a game-changer,” he said.
He said Northern Nigeria reposes strong trust and confidence in President Tinubu, adding: “Your tireless support for and collaboration with Northerners that helped many to win elections into various positions, including that of the presidency in the past, has consolidated the love and trust in the hearts of Northerners for you, as confirmed by the pattern of voting in the last presidential election.”
The ACF BOT chairman further highlighted several achievements within the president’s first year in office, including the prioritization of funding for agriculture and education, as well as the maintenance of good relations with Nigeria’s neighbours.
The ACF applauded Tinubu for prioritizing the Sokoto-Badagry Highway and the Trans-Saharan highway and his implemented measures to fast-track the completion of the Ajaokuta Steel Complex.
”With these developments, we feel greatly motivated and even more confident that Your Excellency will look upon the North with even greater sympathy and strive harder to alleviate the dire economic and social pains in Northern Nigeria,” he said.
…Supreme Court on council autonomy
Meanwhile, a seven-member panel of Justices of the Supreme Court, led by Justice Garba Lawal, Thursday, ordered the 36 state governor to file their defence on the local government autonomy within seven days.
The panel issued the order while ruling on an application filed by the AGF, seeking the abridgement of time in the filing and exchange of processes in the matter.
In the suit marked SC/CV/343/2024, the AGF is praying the Apex Court for an order prohibiting state governors from unilateral, arbitrary and unlawful dissolution of democratically elected local government leaders.
The Attorneys General of Borno, Kano, Kogi, Niger, Ogun, Osun , Oyo and Sokoto states were absent in court and not represented by any lawyer during Thursday’s proceedings, despite being served with hearing notice.
… FG’s argument
Fagbemi, in his argument, requested the court to order the defendants to file their defense within five days in view of the urgency of the matter.
The chairman, body of Attorneys General of the states of the federation, Ben Odoh, who is also the Attorney General of Ebonyi state, did not object to the request for abridgement of time.
He however requested that they be given 15 days as against the five days proposed by the AGF.
In his ruling, the Supreme Court said the decision of the court was predicated on the national importance, urgency of the suit and the non objection from the Attorneys General of the 36 states of the federation.
It held that filing of all processes and exchanging of same must be completed within the time, and subsequently fixed June 13, 2024 for hearing of the suit.
Justice Lawal ordered that, the eight states that were not in attendance at Thursday’s proceedings must be served with fresh hearing notice against the next adjourned date.
He then adjourned till the 13th of June 2024 for hearing of the matter.
…FG’s prayers
The AGF, on behalf of the federal government, had instituted the court action against the governors, primarily seeking full autonomy for local governments as third tier of government in the country.
The Chief Law Officer of the Federation, in the originating summons he personally signed, is also praying the Supreme Court for an order permitting the funds standing in the credits of local governments to be directly channelled to them from the Federation Account in line with the provisions of the Constitution, as against the alleged unlawful joint accounts created by governors.
