PeakNews Online
An Umuahia-based Legal Practitioner, Mr Chuwkuemeka Nwachukwu, has said that the 1999 Constitution must be amended to allow for effective implementation of the Supreme Court judgment on Local Government (LG) autonomy.
Nwachukwu said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Umuahia on Friday.
He said that the 1999 Constitution as amended “has a lot of loopholes”, which must be critically addressed before the LG Autonomy Act and judgment of the nation’s apex court could be effectively enforced.
He, therefore, called for an Executive Bill from the Presidency for the immediate amendment to take care of “the lacuna in the Constitution that has been pointed out over the years”.
Nwachukwu said that failure to do so could undermine the import of the landmark Supreme Court judgment of Thursday on LG autonomy.
He said that clear legal frameworks were essential for effective governance and implementation of judicial decisions.
According to him, this will help to ensure that LGs can operate as an autonomous third tier within defined legal boundaries, thereby enhancing local administration and accountability.
The legal practitioner also called on the Federal Government to set up a monitoring mechanism for checks and balances in the implementation of the judgment across the states of the federation.
Also reacting to the judgment, the immediate past Chairman, National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Abia chapter, Mr Ikechi Nwaigwe, said the Supreme Court’s decision had nothing to cheer about yet.
Nwaigwe told NAN that until every process was put in place to realise the desired LG autonomy, Nigerians should not think it is yet Uhuru.
He argued that desperate Nigerian politicians would always work against the wishes of the people with all their might.
“I am not yet excited by the decision of the Supreme Court, which affirmed the financial autonomy of the LG system.
“It is a good development but we have not reached our El dorado on the issue of LG autonomy.
“I said so because I know Nigerian politicians are desperate and can work so hard to upturn the process of achieving complete autonomy because it will be for the good of the Nigerian people.
“I will be excited if President Bola Tinubu will ensure that the process is completed with necessary legislation passed and proper implementation begun,” he said.
Nwaigwe said that the process of getting proper autonomy should not overlook the process of who becomes LG chairman and persons who might be godfathers to them.
“The process of reaching the desired destination should also ensure the Independent National Electoral Commission conducts the elections to promote competition among parties.
“If the State Governments, through their State Independent Electoral Commissions (SIECs), conduct the elections, the judgment will not achieve the desired goal.
“The state governors will still manipulate the SIECs and the elections,” he said.
In Imo, the state Chairman of NULGE, Mr Charles Okere, said that the LG autonomy would help to promote the welfare of council woŕkers.
Okere, who hailed the judgment, said it would facilitate projects execution according to the peculiar needs of the people at the grassroots.
“The judgment is a welcome development even though it only guarantees financial autonomy because the councils’ administrative responsibility still rests with the State Assemblies,” he said. (NAN)
