The federal, state, and local levels of government are divided, according to the Court's most recent ruling in response to a lawsuit brought by Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, contesting the state governors' authority over LGs. The principles of federalism are being flagrantly violated by this.
The ruling prohibited the governors from accepting, holding onto, or using the LG distributions. According to the Court, states that receive LG funding are in violation of Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution. It claimed that the Constitution mandates that the three levels of government receive a portion of any funds that leave the Federation Account. This is false: there are only two levels of government under federalism: the central government and the federating entities.
The LGs have no place in a federal constitution, so the Supreme Court erred in its decision. Thus, the 1999 Constitution's inclusion of a list of the 774 LGs is among its main shortcomings. This has to be fixed.
Only the federal government and the governments of the province, region, and state are recognized by the constitution in federal jurisdictions like the United States, India, and Brazil. Since states oversee councils, they provide funding for LGs.
The Supreme Court ruling is therefore a plot against federalism.
The Court decided that state governors cannot dissolve elected LG councils and install caretaker committees in their place. The Constitution's Section 7(1) is broken by this. Although we concur with the justices that only democratically elected persons should be able to govern the councils, a federal constitution has no place discussing the financial autonomy of local government units.
The establishment of the State and Local Government Joint Account resulted from council executives embezzling money and failing to compensate elementary school teachers. Primary school teachers are no longer due pay once that account was opened. Regretfully, the diversion of municipal monies would persist even if the monthly contribution was paid to the councils directly.
Instead than pursuing shadows The Bola Tinubu Administration should concentrate at the Supreme Court on the political and economic reorganization of the nation in accordance with true federalism. The goal of federalism, as envisioned by the nation's founding fathers, was to maintain a balance of power between the federal government and its constituent states, promote growth, and take into account the wide range of racial, cultural, and regional differences within the nation.
The Court decided that state governors cannot dissolve elected LG councils and install caretaker committees in their place. The Constitution's Section 7(1) is broken by this. Although we concur with the justices that only democratically elected persons should be able to govern the councils, a federal constitution has no place discussing the financial autonomy of local government units.
The establishment of the State and Local Government Joint Account resulted from council executives embezzling money and failing to compensate elementary school teachers. Primary school teachers are no longer due pay once that account was opened. Regretfully, the diversion of municipal monies would persist even if the monthly contribution was paid to the councils directly.
Instead than pursuing shadows The Bola Tinubu Administration should concentrate at the Supreme Court on the political and economic reorganization of the nation in accordance with true federalism. The goal of federalism, as envisioned by the nation's founding fathers, was to maintain a balance of power between the federal government and its constituent states, promote growth, and take into account the wide range of racial, cultural, and regional differences within the nation.
The path to federalism has been paved with obstacles, contradictions, and departures from its fundamental ideas. Nigeria's federal system was created to support regional autonomy and avoid a centralization of power.
The goal of the federalist concept was to support national prosperity and unity while granting autonomous authority to each region. This was considered necessary for a nation having more than 250 ethnic groups and numerous cultural identities, comparable in diversity to Nigeria.
Nigeria functions more like a centralized system even though it has a federal constitution. With its extensive legislative and executive powers, the federal government frequently intrudes into areas that belong to the states. The 68 items on the Exclusive Legislative List solidify the federal government's impunity.
States must to discontinue the unlawful procedure of forming caretaker committees and dissolving elected councils. Free, fair, and credible local elections are necessary to guarantee accountability.
Nigeria must work together to restructure the current political and administrative system if it is to achieve true federalism. Nigeria may harness its variety and promote development by establishing a connection between the theoretical underpinnings of federalism and the practical reality progress, and create a nation that is more rich and cohesive.
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