The federal government has debunked claims that it granted state governors a three-month moratorium on implementing the Supreme Court’s judgment on local government autonomy.
The clarification was made by the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, while speaking at the 12th convocation ceremony of Afe Babalola University Ado-Ekiti, on Tuesday.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that there have been widespread rumours that the federal government and state governors have agreed to postpone the implementation of the decision on local government autonomy so that local elections be held first.
However, Fagbemi said that the government is committed to enforcing the ruling, ensuring 774 local government areas receive financial autonomy.
Fagbemi stressed that while some logistical arrangements must be made, there’s no going back on implementing the judgment.
Fagbemi said, “Unfortunately, it’s been reported that governors got a three-month moratorium, which isn’t accurate. The judgement will be implemented, but logistical arrangements are necessary. There’s no moratorium. Some states scheduled local elections beyond October, but are they genuine? What do their laws say? Typically, six months’ notice is required; otherwise, courts may nullify elections.
Continuing, the AGF stated, “We’re proceeding cautiously to avoid problems. There’s no moratorium. One or two states risk contempt of court. I won’t comment until reviewing their enactments. Will they rewrite the Supreme Court’s judgement? We’ll take action upon examining their laws.”
The Supreme Court’s ruling in July had ordered direct payment of local government allocations into their accounts. However, the federal government, through the Federation Accounts Allocation Committee, continued paying allocations into joint state and local government accounts.