By Seyi Babalola
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has praised the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold budgetary autonomy for local government councils across Nigeria.
In a statement posted on Thursday via X, Atiku welcomed the decision as “a win for the people of Nigeria” and a move in the right path.
The Supreme Court’s judgment reverses the earlier practice of transferring local council funds to state government accounts. Atiku slammed the previous agreement, claiming that it resulted from premature compromise.
Expressing his support for the ruling, Atiku said, “I align with the decision of the Supreme Court that the structure of the Nigerian government is portioned in three layers, and of these, the local governments should be centres of development.”
The former Vice President went further, advocating for an expansion of fiscal autonomy beyond Federation Account allocations.
“I also share the belief that fiscal autonomy to the local governments should not be limited to revenues from the Federation Accounts, but indeed, should apply to Internally Generated Revenue from the respective local government authorities,” he stated.
Atiku highlighted concerns about state governments, particularly in urban areas, interfering with local councils’ revenue generation.
He wrote, “Many of our states, especially those in the ultra-urban areas with high-density economic activities, have become notorious in muscling local councils from generating revenue on items that border on motor parks, outdoor advertising, rents and many more.”
Atiku further praised the Supreme Court’s role, saying, “The verdict of the court is in tandem with the core functions of the Supreme Court as an arbitration court between and among governments.”
On Thursday, the Supreme Court declared that it is unconstitutional for state governors to hold funds allocated for local government administrations.
The seven-man panel, in the judgment delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, declared that the 774 local government councils in the country should manage their funds themselves.
The apex court held that the power of the government is portioned into three arms of government, the federal, the state and the local government.
The court further declared that a state government has no power to appoint a caretaker committee and a local government council is only recognisable with a democratically elected government.
