Some time last year, the National Assembly, comprising the Federal House of Representatives, and the Senate budgeted Billions of Naira for what it called Constitution Review, and ordered its members to go home and sound out the constituents on certain national issues, including the contentious Autonomous status of Local Government Areas from the over-bearing State Governments that see LGAs and its funds as appendages of the states.
After the deliberations which took place in the seven hundred and seventy four (774) Local Governments across the Federation, and the three hundred and sixty (360) Federal Constituents in Nigeria, the general consensus was that the common people had agreed in unison that the Local Governments should be given autonomous status in the constitution.
However, to the shock of many Nigerians, at the Red Chamber of the National Assembly, the Senators voted against this populist decision by Nigerians.
Luckily for millions of disappointed Nigerians, the House of Representatives came to their rescue by voting in favour of autonomy for LGAs.
Since then, there have been reactions from very many quarters hailing the House of Representatives, and especially, the Chairman of the Constitution Review Committee, Rt Hon Emeka Ihedioha, who happens to be a South-East politician, and particularly a son of Imo state.
And the Senate has been receiving the sticks for voting for themselves and their families, as most of the old men in the Senate are selfish, greedy and think that Nigeria is still in the Shagari era, when the conservative Rich believed that only their children and great grand children are meant to enjoy Nigeria’s natural endowments.
However, the unfortunate aspect in the Senate goofing on the autonomous status of LGAs was that the Chairman of the Constitution Review Committee is an Igbo son, Senator Ike Ikweremadu, who is the Deputy Senate President. The same Senate added to their follies the child-marriage saga.
Talking about the LGA autonomy passage by the House of Representatives, many believe it is not yet uhuru, as the matter would still be subjected to serious debates at Houses of Assembly across the nation before it sees the light of the day.
The general thinking is that the State Governors will try to frustrate it by influencing their Houses of Assembly not to pass the Law on Local Government autonomy. The reason given was that the Governors will not allow LGAs to get financial autonomy so that the elected Council Chairmen will ever remain at the beck and call of the State Chief Executives, who see LGA Chairmen as their errand Boys at the grassroots, and the LGA funds as that of the state, and invariably for the Governors to pillage.
These Governors, despite making every thing possible not to allow LGAs autonomy, are very much aware that the policy will develop the states and improve the living conditions of the electorate. But because of their selfishness and greed they would not allow this noble idea.
It was also said that the reason the Senate refused to pass the Bill was because most of them are nursing the ambition of contesting Governorship positions of their various states, including the Deputy Senate President, and Chairman of the Constitution Review Committee who wants to be Governor of Enugu state in 2015.
This development has confirmed the long-held belief by Nigerians that their Leaders are extremely selfish and only think about their families, friends and inlaws, than the happiness of Nigerians, whom they claim to be representing.
And the questions now are; that Senator who prefers the bad policy that favours him, but not to the benefit of the common people, for how long will he stay in that office?
A Governor who knows that LGA autonomy will improve the lot of generality of people, but wishes to stop it so that he will have too much money to throw about, for how long will he remain in his office that has a fixed term?
The House of Assembly member who would accept money from a Governor and block the passage of LGA autonomy, for how long will he remain in that office?
Would he prefer taking millions of naira as “lobbying” while his parents and relations suffer in the villages without water, good roads and means of livelihood?
Why is it that the Governors are battling too hard to stop this generally accepted good policy that will fast-forward development in Nigeria, when they too are not attached as appendages to the Federal Government that doles out millions of Naira to them every 30 days in Abuja?
If the Federal Government is not looking over the head of the states on how they spend their “Abuja Allocations”, why are the Governors bent of subjugating the Local Governments?
Much as nothing works in Nigeria, I strongly believe that should the LGA autonomy be allowed to sail through, the gain will instantly be felt by all Nigerians, because the LGAs are the nearest Government to the highest number of people, and closer to the electorate.
I know that the limited success recorded in my LGA, Ngor Okpala, was during the period Chief Livy Okoroafor was Chairman, and was the era when elected Chairmen were given the whole council allocations. And they Chairmen then, who were out to work left various gigantic projects.
While Livy Okoroafor carried out massive Rural Electrification Projects in Ngor Okpala, the likes of Uche Diogu of Isu LGA constructed a stadium that can pass for a state owned stadium today. These projects are there for verification, if you so wish.
The reason why nothing is happening in the LGAs today, is that the people are no more sure when the State Governors have released funds to the Council Chairmen. Because of the open knowledge that State Governors tamper with LGA funds, when you ask LGA Chairmen they will tell you that “His Excellency is yet to release funds”.
The one among them that is sincere enough will admit that the Governor has sent “Staff Salary” only.
This confusion robbed the masses the opportunity of acting as the check on their LGA Chairmen. But if it is officially pronounced today that Nigeria LGAs are autonomous, I bet you, no LGA can “eat” Council money.
The Chairmen will be extremely careful and afraid to tamper with LGA funds for many reasons. The people know their Council Chairmen, even before they became elected. Therefore, knowing the Chairmen enough will afford the masses to monitor when the Council Chairman’s “fortunes” are out-growing his income. Trust “Umunnadi”, the Chairman must be put in check. As a “communal” Government, you can’t loot the masses fund and go away free. Can you embezzle Town Union money and survive it?
LGA autonomy will reduce crime and increase productivity, and move Nigeria forward. Many of the roaming youths in Imo state today were formerly engaged in the Local Government Areas.
For instance, all the sacked elected Chairmen in Imo state had almost five staff they were paying directly from their pockets as Aides.
The elected Councilors were employed, including some hangers-on, who get tips from them. The Supervisory Councilors, apart from reducing the number of unemployed had people feeding from them. If you calculate the number of people legally feeding from the 774 LGAs in Nigeria, it runs into millions.
But unfortunately, because these Governors make more money from LGAs if they appoint their stooges as Sole Administrators, they kick against elections in the LGAs.
For two years now, Imo has no elected Council Chairmen and Councilors, because Governor Rochas Okorocha sacked the once he met in office. Now, the Imo LGAs are virtually dead, and our Leaders are happy about it, provided they are lining their pockets with LGA funds while the masses suffer.
Because nothing is happening in the LGAs, where unemployed youths could easily trek to every morning, they look for other alternatives to survive, which leads most of them into various crimes.
These are the reasons kidnapping is high in the South-East. For eight years now, Governor Peter Obi of Anambra state has not conducted election in the LGAs. Therefore, able bodied Anambra youths who would have ended up as Councilors or LGA Chairmen in the last Eight years roam the Streets.
The same goes for Imo, Ebonyi and Enugu states. The last administration in Imo state conducted council election, but all those that won that election are roaming the streets now. Could any one guess too far, why there is much crime in the state now?
In the absence of life at the LGAs, the Governors play gods, as every body troops to State Houses begging for alms, because the LGAs are shut. And this scenario retards the development of the grass root which is the foundation of Nigeria.
Every right thinking Nigerian must subscribe to autonomy of LGAs. Those agitating against it have no tangible reason, other than that they want to continue to loot the collective wealth of the masses.
Great nations all over the world make laws without looking at whose ox was gored, provided it is for the greater good of the
