Monitor LG chairmen to prevent funds diversion – Group warns

The Niger Delta Budget Monitoring Group is advocating for citizens to take an active role in monitoring their local government leaders, to ensure the successful implementation of the Supreme Court’s ruling on Local Government financial autonomy.

The Supreme Court ruled last Thursday that state governors’ practice of holding onto funds allocated for local governments is a violation of the constitution.

Justice Emmanuel Agim, delivering the judgment on behalf of the seven-member panel, declared that the 774 local government councils should be granted financial autonomy and manage their own resources.

Reacting to the judgment, the Niger Delta Group recently said since the National Assembly needs to amend the constitution to enhance the full implementation of the Supreme Court judgment, Nigerians must monitor their LG chairmen to prevent a misappropriation or diversion of funds allocated to the councils henceforth.

High Chief George-Hill Anthony, CEO of the group, stated on Monday that if not closely monitored, local government chairmen might misuse council funds under the guise of financial unawareness.

The group stated, “The National Assembly should act fast as part of political restitution they owe Nigerians, by amending the constitution to align with the supreme court ruling with constitutional realities for local governments existence.

“This will engender pro-poor fiscal re-engineering for democratic gains and sustainability. However, to avoid the gains of the supreme court ruling becoming (implementably) nonsensicality, we urge citizens at the grassroots to brace up on how to engage political actors at the local government level, who may want to use fiscal ignorance to misappropriate and misuse funds expected to be available to LGAs from the court’s ruling.”