Governor Chukwuma Soludo signed the Anambra Local Government Administration Law 2024 into law on Tuesday, prompting criticism.
Soludo stated that the bill was necessary because allowing unlimited power to the 774 local government units would result in “humongous chaos” and would not contribute to long-term growth.
Soludo argued during a news briefing at the Governor’s Lodge in Awka on Tuesday that the Supreme Court decision did not invalidate Section 7 of the 1999 constitution.
Last Tuesday, the state House of Assembly enacted the “Anambra Local Government Administration Law 2024” at its plenary session.
Speaking, Soludo stated that Section 7 of the constitution authorized state governments to pass enabling legislation for the administration of local government districts across the country.
He emphasized that the two bills enacted by the state Assembly aimed to improve consistency, transparency, and collaboration across the many levels of government.
Members of civil society and other opposition groups expressed alarm about the adoption of the Local Government Administration Bill prior to its signature.
The opposition saw it as the governor’s attempt to coerce local government chairmen into returning their federal allotment back to the state.
Among persons groups that raised concerns about the new law were a member of the Labour Party in the state, Chief Damian Ugoh, who said, “Signing of the LG is against the Supreme Court judgement.
“The bill seeks to arm-twist the chairmen to send back the local government allocation received directly from the Federal Government to the state coffers.
“Consequently, we, as a political party, stand by the decision of the Supreme Court, the highest court in the land, on the autonomy of Local Government and the management of their funds.
“That going by the extant order of the Supreme Court, the state House of Assembly cannot make laws seeking to compel the local governments to pay in their federal allocation to the state government under whatever guise.”
Dr Ralph Uche, Executive Director of Civil Rights and Liberty Organization, also reacted, describing the law’s passage as “anti-people” and aimed at depriving local government councils funding intended for grassroots development.
Uche stated, “The measure tries to require local governments to deposit a portion of their federal funds into a consolidated account managed by the state, which is a bad move.
In a news conference following the bill’s signing, Soludo hailed the two new laws as consequential, providing operational life to the Supreme Court decision rather than weakening it.
Soludo said, “The debate as to whether local governments should be part of the federal constitution or left to each federating unit (state) to determine its own appropriate local government system is still an unsettled matter.
“The APC committee on restructuring Nigeria proposed scrapping the local government from the Constitution of Nigeria.
“In the context of our evolving federalism, I see the recent Supreme Court judgment regarding the direct transfer of funds belonging to the local governments as an important contribution to our search for effective and transparent administration of resources at the regional level.
“This is where Section 7 of the Constitution comes in handy, and the Anambra State House of Assembly has risen to the occasion. Happily, the Supreme Court did not nullify Section 7 of the Constitution.”
“The new laws by the Anambra House of Assembly are, therefore, consequential to give operational life to the Supreme Court judgment and not to undermine it.
“If the state House of Assembly abdicates this constitutional duty, the Local Government will then have no law on the use and management of its finances which the Constitution has given the state House of Assembly (and only the House of Assembly) the mandate to legislate on.
“Indeed, in many states, the Houses of Assembly retain the power to suspend or remove chairpersons of local governments.
“By the way, isn’t the legislative authority exercised by the State Assemblies under Section 7 of the Constitution similar to the powers granted by the Constitution to the National Assembly over the Federal Capital Territory and its Area Councils?”
The governor stated that structured collaboration among the tiers of government is a key tool for long-term growth at the grassroots, and that no tier of government has complete autonomy.
He stated that without strong collaboration and coordination between state and local administrations, many LGs will become insolvent, necessitating state bailouts.
“The Federal Government has exclusive right over resources, but the state has exclusive right over the land. At the state level, each state is spending a fortune on its revenue.
“No tier of government can function without the collaboration of others. The three tiers have the objective of the people. The FG is not completely autonomous of the state. It’s a collaborative arrangement to achieve the same objective.
“The new laws of Anambra are designed to protect the LG against collapse, to protect our workers and prevent our primary health care from collapsing. In Anambra, we do not want to wake up and hear that one local government pays a salary while others do not.
“With these laws, workers and retirees from the LG system in Anambra can sleep with their two eyes closed. All tiers must collaborate, coordinate and work with one another. In summary, the laws ensure that the state can function cohesively.
“The essence of putting the money together is not for governors to put it in their pocket. If LG wakes up one day and can’t pay salaries or gratuities, who will intervene for them?
“That is the beautiful thing that these laws would avoid. It is designed to unleash the creative powers of the LG as well as novel accountability and ingenuity. The constitution mandates that both the state and the LGs must jointly plan the state together.
“We agreed to send the money directly to the LG, it will encourage greater participation. But then, if the money gets there, who exercises oversight function on it? How are you going to spend it so that the system doesn’t collapse and we don’t get into a chaotic situation as it were? The essence of the law is to have the state planned in a coherent, systematic and sustainable way,” the governor added.
Soludo, on the other hand, rejected reports that governors forced LG chairmen to take a secret oath allowing them to transfer LG cash to the state, claiming that such a thing never happened.
He said, “Governors are often accused of seeking to ‘control’ LG funds with insinuations that LG funds are mismanaged.
“Of course, in a society where public office is seen as a ‘dining table’ and public trust is low, people judge others by their standards: by what they would do if they were in the position. I often ask: control for what?”
