Keep an eye on LG chairmen to prevent embezzlement of funds, budget group warns

The Niger Delta Budget Monitoring Group has called on Nigerians to henceforth keep a close eye on their political leaders at the local government level, in order to consolidate the benefits of the recent Supreme Court ruling on the financial autonomy of local governments.

In a ruling last Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled that it is unconstitutional for state governors to withhold funds intended for local governments.

The seven-member panel ruled in the judgment of Justice Emmanuel Agim that the country’s 774 local governments must manage their own money.

Reacting to the ruling, the Niger Delta Group recently said that the National Assembly should amend the Constitution to facilitate the full implementation of the Supreme Court ruling. Nigerians should monitor their LG chairmen to prevent embezzlement or diversion of funds allocated to the councils.

In a statement issued on Monday and signed by its Managing Director, Chief George-Hill Anthony, the group said the LG chairmen may seek to use financial ignorance to misuse the council’s funds if left unchecked.

The group stated: “The National Assembly must act expeditiously as part of the political restitution it owes Nigerians by amending the Constitution to bring it into line with the Supreme Court ruling and the constitutional reality for the existence of local governments.

“This will lead to a pro-poor fiscal re-design for democratic gain and sustainability. However, to prevent the gains of the Supreme Court ruling from becoming (implementable) nonsense, we urge citizens to prepare themselves on how to engage political actors at the local government level who may seek to use fiscal ignorance to embezzle and misuse funds that were expected to be available to LGAs based on the court ruling.”

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