N-East emerges best with 37 of 112 LGAs not under democracy

N-West emerges worst with 115 of 186 LGAs affected

S-East follows with 82 of 95 councils hit

By Clifford Ndujihe, Politics Editor

IN spite of efforts to deepen democracy in Nigeria, no fewer than 19 state governors are running their local councils with transition or caretaker committees.

Saturday Vanguard’s checks indicate that currently, 433 (58.2 per cent) of the 774 local councils are without elected chairmen and councillors. This is against the provisions of Section 7 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which guarantees the system of local government by democratically elected officials.

From next month, the number of undemocratically administered LGAs may go higher as the tenures of council officers expire in Jigawa (June 1) and Rivers.

Only 311 LGAs (41.8 per cent) across 17 states and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, have elected officers.

Reasons cited for the inability of many states to conduct council polls include insecurity, paucity of funds, political and legal battles.

In July 2014, the Supreme Court ruled that state governors do not have the powers to sack elected council officials.

The apex court while delivering judgment in the case of the removal of 148 elected local government officials by the Abia State Government in 2006, unanimously held that the action was illegal and amounted to “official recklessness” by the governor
Subsequently, it was agreed that federal allocation to councils without elected officials should stop but this is yet to be implemented. The move to ensure direct allocations to the councils via the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, NFIU, guidelines on the management of local governments’ funds in 2019 was aborted by governors.

Anambra, Imo, Kwara, Zamfara worst hit

Among the 36 states of the country, Anambra, Imo, Kwara and Zamfara are the most affected.

The last local government election in Anambra State was conducted in November 2014, at the twilight of the administration of Governor Peter Obi. Thereafter, the state has been without elected council executives since 2017.

So, this year marks exactly 10 years of no council election in Anambra.

In Imo, the last council poll was conducted on August 25, 2018. It was the first LG election in seven years.

In Kwara, the last council election was in November 2017, caretaker committees have been in charge since 2020.

In Zamfara, the last grassroots poll was held on April 27, 2019 and the state returned to appointees after the tenure of the chairmen expired.

Bauchi is another state that has not fared well in ensuring democracy at the council level. For 12 years, between 2008 and 2020, there was no LG election in the state. In October 2020, council poll was held and when the tenure of the elected executive ended in October 2022, Governor Bala Mohammed appointed caretaker committees.

In Benue, the last LG poll was held on May 1, 2022. However, Governor Hyacinth Alia, on June 24 acted on the correspondence from the State Assembly that recommended the suspension of the council chairmen, pending when they will complete investigations into cases of alleged corruption against them. The chairmen went to court but currently the councils are administered by appointees.

How Mutfwang sacked Plateau chairmen

Out-gone Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau swore in elected council chairmen on October 11, 2022 following their election on October 9.

However, his successor, Governor Caleb Mutfwang, on June 1, 2023 suspended all democratic structures in the 17 local councils following the recommendations of the Plateau State House of Assembly, and appointed transition chairmen

Governor Mutfwang said that “the suspension followed their inability to produce documents related to financial transactions in the various local governments,” saying all efforts to make them produce the documents proved abortive.

He explained that “the state government, after careful study of the recommendations, resolved to suspend the chairmen to conduct an efficient and proper investigation into the development.”

N-West, South-East fare worst

Among the six geo-political zones, the North-West and South-East are the worst.

In the South-East, only one of the five states, Ebonyi (13 LGAs) operates democracy at the grassroots with elected executives. The other four states – Abia, Anambra, Enugu and Imo (82 LGAs) don’t have elected councils.

In the North-West zone, four of the seven states (Katsina, Kano, Sokoto and Zamfara) with 115 LGAs are not under democratic rule. The other states (Jigawa, Kaduna and kebbi) with 71 LGAs have elected executives.

North-East emerges as the best

Clearly, the North-East is the best currently in the entrenchment of democracy in the grassroots. Only 37 of its 112 LGAs drawn from Bauchi and Yobe states are manned by appoints. The other four states-Adamawa, Borno, Gombe and Taraba (75 LGAs) have democracy at the councils.

How other zones fared

In the South-West, only 48 LGAs from Ondo and Osun are without elected councils as the remaining four- Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun and Oyo have democratically administered 69 LGAs.

North-Central has 44 democratically administered LGAs and 77 without.

In the South-South, 74 LGAs from three states (Delta, Akwa Ibom and Cross River) are not under democracy while 49 LGAs in the other three- Edo, Bayelsa and Rivers are under democracy.

19 states without elected LGAs

Abia-17

Anambra-21

Enugu-17

imo-27

Akwa Ibom – 31

Delta -25

Cross River-18

Ondo-18

Osun-30

Benue-23

Kogi-21

Kwara-16

Plateau-17

Bauchi-20

Yobe-17

Katsina – 34

Kano -44

Sokoto-23

Zamfara -14

Total 433 LGAs

Zonal distribution of undemocratic LGAs

North-West — 115

South-East –82

North-Central –77

South-South–74

South-West –48

North-East –37

Senate seeks stoppage of funds to defaulting LGAs

Disturbed by the worsening development, the Senate, on May 15, 2024 urged the Federal Government to stop further allocation of funds to caretaker committee-led local government councils nationwide.

This followed the adoption of a motion by Senator Suleiman Kawu (NNPP-Kano) on “Urgent Call on the President to Resuscitate Local Government System in Nigeria” at the plenary.

“The challenges we face, persistent security threats, rural-urban migration, decaying infrastructure and widespread unemployment, demand bold action.

“And we believe that empowering local government areas holds the key to unlocking a brighter future for all Nigerians,” he said.

Kawu said that the dream of achieving the objectives of the local government system encountered harsh realities, lamenting that “successive governments often eroded local autonomy, limiting their financial resources and control over decision-making.”

He continued: “Corruption scandals and mismanagement tarnished the image of some local governments, fueling public cynicism,” he said.”

In the motion, Kawu said that some governors played a crucial role in frustrating local government autonomy in Nigeria through constitutional alteration processes.

“With limited financial and operational autonomy, local governments may struggle to effectively address local security concerns like community policing initiatives and intelligence gathering,” he added.

Contributing, Senator Ahmad Lawan (APC-Yobe) concurred, saying that the local governments must be effective and guaranteed by the Constitution.

” I urge that we find a way of improving the capacity of those who run the local government system because I believe this requires devolution of powers,” he added.

Supporting the motion, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu (APC-Abia) said that local government funds must be returned 100 per cent to the local government councils and the capacity of the people running the councils must be improved

Senator Ifeanyi Ubah (APC-Anambra) said to promote good governance in the country, “we must amend Section Seven of the 1999 Constitution.We need to amend it so that we can start having values for democracy in our states.

“A state like Anambra has not conducted local government election in the last 10 years,” he lamented

Ruling, the Deputy Senate President, Jibrin Barau, who presided over plenary, said the motion was apt and in line with “the zeal of all senators to bring sanity to bear in the local government system.”

Whether or not democracy will be restored in the local government system is a question of time.