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I will ensure full autonomy for LGCs – Gov. Fintiri

I will ensure full autonomy for LGCs – Gov. Fintiri

By Muhammad Adam
Autonomy
Yola, Oct. 14, 2019 (NAN) Gov. Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa has reaffirmed his commitment to ensure full autonomy for local government councils in the state.
Fintiri gave the assurance to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) loyalists during a grand rally at Mahmud Ribadu Square on Monday in Yola.
He noted that his administration would not touch a single penny from local government accounts apart from the statutory deductions and insisted on transparent leadership.
On the court verdict that upheld his victory, he said there was no any means of shortcut to attain leadership position, but only through destiny from the Almighty.
“My emergence as state Governor was a will of God and nobody can challenge that will.
“I am assuring you, I will not let you down and we are going to build a strong and positive government that will impact positively on the people of the state,” he said.
According to Fintiri, his administration will make sure that every child in the state is given opportunity for free primary and secondary education.
Speaking earlier, Mr Tahir Shehu, the state Chairman of PDP, said the rally was organised to express their appreciation to Almighty that gave them victory in the recent election tribunal judgment.
Shehu said the ruling party had well prepared for the November local government election and called on the people of the state to support the party. (NAN)
AMA/MST
Edited by Muhammad Suleiman Tola

Politics

I am not against LG autonomy – Gov. Badaru

I am not against LG autonomy – Gov. Badaru
By Abdullahi Shugaba
Salary
Dutse, July 9, 2019 (NAN) Gov. Muhammad Badaru of Jigawa says he is not against the local government autonomy granted by the Federal Government.
Badaru told newsmen in Dutse on Tuesday that he was trying to strengthen the operations of the councils in the state and not to stifle them.
He dismissed speculations that he delayed payment of June salary for the local government workers because he was against their autonomy.
The governor explained that the council staff collected their salaries late in June because he wanted to ensure transparency and accountability in disbursement and utilisation of funds.
Badaru added that part of the reason was to also screen and ascertain the total number of staff in the payroll of the whole local governments in the state before he finally hands over.
“While doing this, people started insinuating and speculating that I do not want the autonomy given to local government in the country, this is not true.
“Everybody is free to verify, I used to give special intervention to the local government to solve some of their challenges.
“There are many local governments in the state that cannot execute projects after they finish paying staff salaries.
“For instance, staff salary alone of Hadejia Local Government Council is N50 million; there are many local governments with similar problems like that.
“In this case we use to give them bailout to execute some projects for their people.
“Some commissioners and top politicians in local governments influenced employments for their wives, among others, and this type of employees don’t come to work.
“With the latest development, those types of people will be exposed.
“I am not in the right position to tell the local government chairmen to right size or down size their staff but they should know that they have enormous task and responsibilities before them,’’ Badaru said. (NAN)
AIS/BOLA/MST
Edited by Bola Akingbehin/Muhammad Suleiman Tola

General news

State assemblies’ obstacles to LG autonomy-Sen Shehu Sani

 

NAN-H-95

Autonomy

By Bukola Adewumi

Abuja, April 27, 2017 (NAN) Senator Shehu Sani, the Chairman Senate Committee on Foreign and Domestic Debts has blamed State Houses of Assembly for failing to grant Local Governments autonomy.

 

Sani spoke while addressing members of the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) at the Grand Finale of the “Local Government Autonomy Rally’’ in Abuja on Thursday.

 

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the rally, which was coordinated by Comrade Ibrahim Khaleel, NULGE President was also held in all the states of the federation and rounded off in the FCT.

 

The rally was to protest the lack of autonomy by local governments.

 

The senator said that funds allocated to local governments rarely got to them as state governments siphoned such funds for their personal use rather than for payment of salaries and execution of capital projects.

 

“The greatest obstacle of local government autonomy is the state assemblies being manipulated by state governors.

“State assemblies must rise up to the challenge and do the needful. We are here for you and we will stand by you to fight for local government autonomy,” Sani said.

 

The senator said the struggle to gain local government autonomy must be intense in the National Assembly and by state governments.

 

According to him, if the money allocated to local governments are properly utilised, we will not be where we are now facing recession.

 

“Present political leaders still has the same manifestos as those in the 1960s, we will give you water, electricity, infrastructure and so on but we do not get to see any of these.’’

Also speaking, Sen. Abdullahi Gumel, Chairman Senate Committee on State and Local Government Administration assured the union that the senate would do all within its power to ensure local governments got autonomy.

 

Gumel who represented the Senate President, Bukola Saraki said the Federal Government had given bailout funds of more than N405 billion to state governments to pay salaries.

 

“The reason why we will support the local government autonomy is to make local governments independent.

 

“The Federal Government has no business providing primary health care, roads, and so on for states and local governments as these two arms of government are supposed to provide these infrastructure for their people,” Saraki said.

 

Earlier, NULGE president Khaleel said the rally was aimed at fighting for autonomy for local governments, as well as liberation of the masses for the future.

 

He said the local governments were no longer as functional as they used to be, because they had been hijacked by state governments.

 

According to him, this has disconnected people at the grassroots from the government.

 

“This is why we are making our demands clear. We demand financial and political autonomy, job security for local government workers and direct funding of local governments from the federation account.

 

“We also demand adequate care for traditional institutions, abolition of illegal deductions from local governments’ monthly allocations and local government representation at the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).’’

 

Comrade Ayuba Wabba, the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) said the union had joined the struggle for local government autonomy to ensure people at the grassroots survived.

“If local governments function properly, the issue of insecurity will be a thing of the past. We can address corruption.’’

 

He called on Nigerians to ensure they obtained a voters’ card so that they to enable them support only law makers who would ensure autonomy of local governments. (NAN)

BOL/KRY/EEE

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Edited by Ese E.Ekama

 

 

General news

NANS backs LG autonomy

NANS backs LG autonomy

NAN-H-5

Autonomy

Abuja, April 13, 2017 (NAN) The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) says it supports the call for full autonomy for local government councils.

A statement by NANS’s President, Mr Chinonso Obasi, on Thursday in Abuja, said Nigeria’s democracy would remain incomplete until local government councils were granted autonomy.

Obasi said it was disheartening to note that for almost 19 years of the nation’s democracy, the third tier of government had continued to be an appendage of state governments.

He said that the current status of local governments had hindered grassroots development.

“We the Nigerian students have decided to throw our weight behind calls for full autonomy of the councils so that it could bring about the much needed inclusion of the rural dwellers.

“Furthermore, NANS is of the opinion that the grass roots governance that local government councils provide gives the masses a sense of belonging and platform to ventilate their aspirations for good governance and easy access to government.

“More than anything else, an autonomous local government system will enable young people to participate in governance and thereby use their knowledge and energy to provide leadership and cater for the rural population, particularly the nation’s senior citizens,’’ he stated.

Obasi said that electoral misbehaviour, including ballot box snatching, thuggery and violence could be traced to displacement of young people from local government administration where they ought to gain leadership experience.

The NANS president said that local employees were better placed to interface with the people and generate revenue for the council, through radio licenses, market stalls rent and produce levies, among others.

“Maintenance of rural infrastructure and construction of social amenities have not been what they used to be because of the confused state of affairs at the local government councils.

“This is a compelling reason why we insist on local government autonomy to fill the missing gaps in our democratic architecture,’’ he said. (NAN)

CJ/MST

Edited by Muhammad Suleiman Tola