The lingering imbroglio over Local Government full Autonomy will be addressed and resolved through interactive stakeholders consultations and thorough legislative and judicial processes.
This was highlighted during a stakeholders meeting with Senator Yunus Akintunde the Distinguished Senator representing Oyo Central Senatorial District at the Senate.
“We can appreciate the apprehension and confusion the issue of local government autonomy is currently generating within the polity, but there is the need for urgent intervention to find lasting solutions and we assure our people that the National Assembly is poised to intervene without delay”.
“Many people do not understand the history of the dilemma as created by military intervention which disrupted the smooth running of our three tiers of peculiar federalism, although it was a necessary intervention then due to military incursion into established democratic setting in governance for ease of administration of the local government system, but we failed to return to normalcy since the return to democratic governance in this dispensation of the third republic”
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“We at the National Assembly have decided to make provisions for adequate consultations and thorough appraisal of the situation. We may need to further interact with our leadership across all levels of government on the urgency to stabilize a position of efficient and sustainable local government administrative system in the interest of our people and the need for steady progress on growth and development of our Nation”.
“All over the world, it is now fashionable to decentralize governance for efficiency and effectiveness in reaching out to the needs of the society. Nigeria as a Nation is too vast and large to manage with just two tiers of government as implied in federalism, however, it is not out of place to fashion out our own brand of federalism to accommodate more tiers within the union, but we must agree on the principles and processes of such scenario and the associated peculiarities before taking an established democratic position”.
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“There are several salient, critical and delicate associated complexities that must be dealt with within the context of full autonomy for Local Government administration which only legislative and judicial provisions can make possible, otherwise we will always be dealing with the issues on the surface values and that will further worsen the situation”.
” A close assessment of the present position has revealed the several benefits we can derive by the reformation and robust repositioning of local government administrative system, such benefits include drastic improvement on resolving insecurity problems, boost in agriculture, improved environment, primary health and education systems enhancement, growth of our mining sector among others”
“We have started the processes with initiatives and we are cognizant of the need to interact with the relevant stakeholders, beyond plenaries we shall have public sittings and study exhaustively the various documented recommendations and presentations on the matter, while creating legislative processes and legal positions that will resolve the situation permanently without prejudice and sentiments”.
“We must as a people in unity move our Nation forward and at the National Assembly, we are fully aware of the enormity of our responsibilities in that regard with absolute commitment not to disappoint the Nation”.
“In a short while without any further delay, the imbroglio will be resolved to avoid the delicate intricacies of realities and fears being entertained from the outcome of the pronouncements of the Supreme court on the aspect of financial autonomy for local governments which is just a fraction of the much more important and ideal situation of full autonomy as a third tier of government within our federation”.
Kunle OLATUNJI
Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to Senator Yunus Akintunde.
