In line with Section 7(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the Supreme Court of Nigeria, on Thursday, July 11, 2024, declared that a state government has no power to inaugurate caretaker committees to run the affairs of local councils.
It made a somewhat controversial order that statutory allocations from the Federation Account should be paid directly to the local governments, contrary to the provisions of Section 162(5)(6)(7)(8) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The apex court held that state governments are perpetuating a dangerous trend by refusing to allow democratically elected local government councils to function. It deplored the practice of state governments appointing their loyalists as caretaker committee members, who can only be removed by them. “A democratically elected local government is sacrosanct and non-negotiable,” the court ruled.
The Supreme Court also declared that it is unconstitutional for state governments to hold funds allocated for local government administration. “Demand of justice requires a progressive interpretation of the law… The Federation can pay Local Government allocations from the Federation Account to Local Government Councils directly or pay to them through States. In this case, since paying them through states has not worked, the justice of the case demands that the Local Government Council allocations from the Federation Account should henceforth be paid directly to the Local Government Councils.”
Furthermore, the court held that the local council funds must be paid to only democratically elected local councils, stating that “anything other than this will be taken as a gross misconduct.”
Section 7 (1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) provides as follows:
“The system of local government by democratically elected local government councils is under this Constitution guaranteed; and accordingly, the Government of every State shall, subject to section 8 of this Constitution, ensure their existence under a Law which provides for the establishment, structure, composition, finance and functions of such councils.”
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Section 162 (1)(3)(5)(6)(7) and (8) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) provide as follows:
“162. (1) The Federation shall maintain a special account to be called “the Federation Account” into which shall be paid all revenues collected by the Government of the Federation, except the proceeds from the personal income tax of the personnel of the armed forces of the Federation, the Nigeria Police Force, the Ministry or department of government charged with responsibility for Foreign Affairs and the residents of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
(3) Any amount standing to the credit of the Federation Account shall be distributed among the Federal and State Governments and the Local Government Councils in each State on such terms and in such manner as may be prescribed by the National Assembly.
(5) The amount standing to the credit of Local Government Councils in the Federation Account shall also be allocated to the State for the benefit of their Local Government Councils on such terms and in such manner as may be prescribed by the National Assembly.
(6) Each State shall maintain a special account to be called “State Joint Local Government Account” into which shall be paid all allocations to the Local Government Councils of the State from the Federation Account and from the Government of the State.
(7) Each State shall pay to Local Government Councils in its area of jurisdiction such proportion of its total revenue on such terms and in such manner as may be prescribed by the National Assembly.
(8) The amount standing to the credit of Local Government Councils of a State shall be distributed among the Local Government Councils of that State on such terms and in such manner as may be prescribed by the House of Assembly of the State.”
Given the above provisions of the Constitution, we welcome, whole-heatedly, the ruling of the Supreme Court in ensuring that only democratically elected officials run the administration of the local councils across the country. However, while we deplore in strongest terms the abuse of “State Joint Local Government Account” and consequently misappropriation of local government funds by state governments, the ruling of the apex court authorizing direct payment of statutory allocations to local councils would seem to fly in the face of the Constitution with its consequential ramifications for the federation.
In our recent editorial (The Hysteria About Local Government Autonomy), reproduced substantially below, we examined the (mis)fortunes of local government system in Nigeria, especially in the light of the recent nation-wide agitation, if not hysteria, for local government autonomy, which provoked the May 26, 2024 suit filed at the Supreme Court by the Federal Government against the 36 State Governments…
