Fayose Faults Supreme Court Judgement, Explains Why LG Autonomy Won’t Work

• Ayo Fayose, the former governor of Ekiti state, has reacted to the Supreme Court judgement granting financial autonomy to local government officials
• Fayose noted that the state and local government tiers of government were inseparable and no one could “take the baby from the mother”
• In a recent interview, Fayose explained the role of the state governors in the success of the LG elections

Legit.ng journalist Esther Odili has over two years of experience covering political parties and movements.

Ayo Fayose, a former governor of Ekiti state, has expressed concern over the Supreme Court judgement affirming local governments’ right to receive monthly allocations directly from the federation account.

Fayose emphasised that despite the court verdict, state Houses of Assembly and the governors will always be a clog in the wheel of local government autonomy.

Read also

Abuja campaigner dares Wike over hunger protest at Eagles Square: “With or without your approval”

He made this assertion when he was featured as a guest on Sunday’s edition of Channels Television’s Politics Today.

LG councilmen need governors' support

The Ekiti politician and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stressed that nobody from the grassroots can emerge as a local government chairman without the support of a governor. He insisted that both the court and the federal government ‘cannot take the baby from the mother.’

Fayose said:

"You cannot take the baby from the mother. There is nobody that will become council chairman without the governor. Anybody telling you otherwise is wasting his time.''

What Fayose said about LG councilmen

Buttressing his point on the LG autonomy, Fayose said the state lawmakers are frustrating the process; adding that most council officials don’t take their work seriously, The Punch reported.

Read also

Hardship protest: Professor Farooq Kperogi identifies ‘sponsors’

“Go to the council meeting on Wednesday or Friday, you will not find 10 per cent of the staff of the local government in the office. They don’t come. My name is Ayo Fayose and I want them to dispute this. They don’t come to work. When you make moves to bring them to book, both NULGE and all leaders of the local government will go and beg the governor,” he added.

Watch Fayose's interview below:

LG autonomy: Femi Falana hails Supreme Court

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that human rights lawyer Femi Falana hailed the Supreme Court’s judgement, which gave the local governments full financial autonomy.

Falana expressed support for the apex court's decision and noted that the judgement would promote accountability at the grassroots level.

He urged the 36 state governors to study the judgement and noted that the ruling "was not meant to strip the state governments of their influence over the LGAs".

Read also

Lagos govt breaks silence on sponsoring Oro festival to disrupt hunger protest: “Adherents have rights”

Proofreading by Nkem Ikeke, journalist and copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng