Guests at the dialogue forum organised by The Change We Need Nigeria Initiative (TCWNNI) on Friday in Abuja
Stakeholders, on Friday, called for a legal framework that would allow the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct local government elections in the country.
They spoke at a dialogue forum organised by the Change We Need Nigeria Initiative (TCWNNI) in Abuja.
The participants said such move would help to ensure independence of the elected chairmen and make them to be more accountable to the people.
Mr Kolawole Banwo, Head of Advocacy, Policy and Communications, Water Aids, said that joint state–local government accounts and excessive control by governors had crippled the financial independence of local councils.
Banwo called for reforms that would guarantee democratically elected councils, secure four-year tenure and direct access to federal allocations in line with the Supreme Court judgement.
He, therefore, called for the law that would give INEC the power to conduct elections at the local government level.
“If INEC conducts election, because at that level, vested interest is less than when you have a State Independent Electoral Commission, accountability will be ensured.
“Though this may not be perfect, but the fact that the governor cannot call the INEC chair and tell him who should win an election already reduces the tendency, unlike a chairman that he appointed for the body.”
He said this would ensure the independence of the institution.
Mrs Esther Audu, former Chairperson, Abuja Municipal Area Council, backed the recommendation that the electoral umpire should be empowered to conduct local government polls.
“If the election is left for the state government, they will have influence on who comes in, instead of the people having influence on who comes in to serve them.
“INEC should be allowed to conduct elections at local, state and national levels,” she said.
Dr Sam Amadi, Director, Abuja School of Social and Political Thought, in his keynote address on the theme: “Making Local Government Autonomy Work for the People,” called for a citizen-led reform of Nigeria’s local government system.
He argued that while the recent Supreme Court judgment on local government autonomy has reignited a national debate, the focus must shift from legal reforms to rebuilding civic accountability and democratic participation at the local level.
“Citizens must hold those in their closest political spaces accountable,” he said.
Mr Aliyu Kankara, the President-General of the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), said if the local government autonomy is fully implemented, all the challenges facing people at the grassroots would be addressed.
Represented by Mr Olamisoji Tolulope, the National Organising Secretary of union, Kankara agreed that giving INEC the responsibility of conducting the polls would go a long way to solving the challenges at the level.
He urged the Federal Government to put the necessary measures in place towards ensuring all the state governments comply strictly with the judgement of the supreme court granting financially autonomy to all local government across the federation
He said if the autonomy granted is fully implemented, problems ranging from primary healthcare, rural electrification, education, security, among others, would be addressed.
The Convener of the forum, Dr Cosmos Ilechukwu, said that the Supreme Court judgement in favour of local government autonomy was a welcome development.
Ilechukwu, who is the General Overseer of the Charismatic Renewal Ministries (CRM), called on the political leaders at the federal and state levels to implement it for nation building.
According to him, real progress depends on the political will of leaders at both the federal and state levels to implement it.
He explained that local government is the tier of government closest to the people and most essential for everyday development, from clean water and functional schools to organised markets and community infrastructure.
The cleric, who called for a paradigm change in the conduct of local government elections, said it was high time INEC takes over the conduct of the polls.
His words: “The issue is that if local governments are not independent, how can they be accountable?
“If you put somebody as a local government chairman, and you are controlling him from your government office, how do you expect people to hold the person responsible?
“So it is important that we call them what they are.
“If they are really chairmen, they should have some powers to be able to operate, and some resources to be able to operate.
“My prayer is that local government authorities should function effectively in Nigeria, meet their custodial responsibilities and enable people to feel the benefits of democracy at the very basic local level.”
This year’s forum was titled: “Local Government Autonomy: Making it Work.”
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