……..Opposition kicks as ruling parties sweep polls in states
……….” Govs deploy SIECs, State Assembly to hold tight, frustrate implementation of ruling
………Courts may nullify some state LG elections, FG warns against contempt
BY EZEOCHA NZEH
There are strong indications that the federal government may enter into a fresh battle with state governors over the soul of the 774 local government area s in the country
This is as the federal has decried the rush by the governors to conduct local government area election, following the recent Supreme Court ruling that granted full administrative and financial autonomy to the LGs
The court held in it’s ruling that the local governments across the country should, henceforth, receive their allocations directly from the Accountant-General of the Federation.
It further directed that the federal should henceforth withold the local government area allocations in states where a democratic local government area election is not conducted
This came following the refusal of state governors to conduct LGA elections as they preferred administering the LGAs with their appointed sides as either Caretaker Committee chairmen or Sole Administrators
So far, about 22 states have conducted local government area election since the Supreme Court order in July 11, 2024
The governors in their determination to retail total control of the funds and administration of the LGs, have deployed both the State Independent Electoral Commission (SIECs) and State Assemblies to conduct dubious local government area elections, where their cronies and anointed aides were declared winners both at the chairmannship and ward councilorship levels
Among the 22 states that have so far conducted their local government area elections, the ruling parties swept all the polls at both chairmannship and councilorship seats
In some states, result were declared by the SIEC chairman by announcing the governor’s choice candidates as winner without allotting votes to the candidates and their political parties
Some governors did not even end at fixing their cronies as LG bosses, but also used the state House of Assembly which is no doubt under their control to enact laws, jettisoning the apex court ruling and enforcing the control of local government area funds under the state
For example, despite Supreme Court ruling, Anambra state introduced a bill for deductions of LG funds
The bill, titled “Anambra Local Government Administration Law 2024,” which has already been passed by the state assembly and hurriedly signed by Governor Chukwuuma Soludo, seeks to compel local governments in the state to remit a portion of their federal allocations into a consolidated account controlled by the Anambra State Government, despite protest by the opposition members of the assembly
Protesting against the bill members of the Labour Party (LP) in the Anambra State House of Assembly urged the governor not to sign it, describing it as against the orders of the supreme court, as well as a ot to stifle the LG and against development
Hon. Mbachu (Awka South I – Labour Party), argued that if passed into law, the bill would allow the Anambra State Government to share in funds meant for local government councils.
The lawmaker stressed that the situation would undermine the financial independence of local governments in the state.
He warned that the proposed deductions would restrict local government’s ability to independently manage their funds.
Hon. Mbachu called on President Bola Tinubu to monitor governors who might want to compel elected chairpersons to divert funds to the state government.
Similarly, members of the Labour Party (LP) Caucus in the Anambra House of Assembly unanimously opposed the bill.
The leader of the caucus, Hon.Jude Umennajiego (Onitsha South 2), who spoke on behalf of his colleagues was emphatic to say they had rejected the bill.
“We equivocally stand with the overwhelming majority of Anambra people in upholding the constitution and the Supreme Court decision,” he said.
Other opposition members of the caucus are Patrick Okafor (Onitsha North 2), Paul Oby (Orumba North), Nkechi Ogbuefi (Anaocha 1), Fredrick Ezenwa (South 1), Kingsley Udemezue (Idemili North), Justice Azuka (Onitsha North 1) and Mr Mbachu.
Section 13(1) of the bill provides that the state shall maintain a “State Joint Local Government Account,” into which all federal allocations to local governments in Anambra State must be deposited.
Section 14(3) of the bill stipulates that each local government in the state must remit a state-determined percentage to the consolidated account within two working days of receiving their allocations from the Federation Account.
Section 14(4) maintains that if the state receives the local government allocation on their behalf, it must deduct the specified percentage before disbursing the remaining funds to the local governments.
However, defending the bill, Anambra State Commissioner for Information, Law Mefor, said, the governor acted within the law
Mefor said that the state government acted under Section 7 of the Nigerian Constitution, which empowers the state house of assembly to make laws regulating the local government.
The commissioner argued further that the section of the constitution empowers the state government to “oversee” the affairs of the local governments both in administration and finance, adding that the state government aimed to “safeguard” the finances of the local governments and “direct” council chairpersons to their responsibilities, especially for projects often carried out in collaboration with the state government.
“If we don’t do that, any of these young local government chairmen can decide to play around with what they will consider their own priorities,” Mr Mefor said.
The commissioner criticised those opposing the bill.
“They would have turned around to blame the state government when the local government administrators abandon their statutory responsibilities like payment of pensions,” he said
As the various states rush to beat the Supreme Court order on federal government to seize the financial allocation of local government areas that are administered with the appointees of governors, the trend of ruling political parties sweeping the local government area election has continued in almost all the 36 states that are about to complete the conduct of local government area elections
New National Star reports that while the opposition political parties, including the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), New. Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), Labour Party (LP) and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) swept the national chairmannship and councilorship seats in the states under their control, it has remained a similar pattern of victory to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in their states of control
This is even as the local government area election has been greeted with boycotts by the opposition in states where they have confidence in the State I dependent Electoral Commission (SIECs), which has no doubt been able to prove the prove the opposition right as they have always worked to install all the governors choices of councilors and chairmen
Just as it happened in Kaduna, last weekend, the Kogi State Independent Electoral Commission (KOSIEC) similarly all the candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as winners of the state’s local government area election conducted across the 21 local governments and 239 wards in the state.
KOSIEC chairman, Mamman Nda-Eric, who announced the results in Lokoja, described the election as peaceful, free, fair, and credible.
This is even as the opposition parties in the state have described the election as a mockery of democracy.
The CNPP Chairman in Kogi State, Comrade Mohammed Kabir Abdullahi, berated the KOSIEC, saying that there was no LG election in the state.
He said, “This is the biggest mockery in the 21st century. We thought that our democracy has grown, but unknowingly to us, we are 10 steps backward.
“Kogi State Independent Electoral Commission has once again displayed there incompetency as regards to the conduct of council poll”, he said.
In the same vein, the state organising Secretary of the People Democratic Party (PDP), Hon. Abdukadir Ibrahim, alleged that all the electoral materials were diverted to unknown destination, rather than to the local governments for the election.
“I and other opposition parties were at the KOSIEC headquarters, Lokoja to collect electoral materials for our various parties. To our dismay, all the electoral materials were diverted to unknown places. It was a mockery of election”, he said .
However, in his assessment of the polls, the Minister of Steel Development, Prince Shuaibu Abubakar Audu, commended the KOSIEC for what he described as the “peaceful conduct as well as the massive turnout of voters across the state.”
Audu said: “My advice is that the winners should do their job in a way that will be impactful to the people”
Kogi state governor, Ahmed Usman Ododo, commended the commission and the people of the state for conducting themselves peacefully irrespective of their political affiliations.
