By Nchetachi Chukwuajah
President Bola Tinubu says he may be forced to issue an Executive Order to enforce direct allocations to local governments if state governors fail to comply with a recent Supreme Court ruling upholding financial autonomy for local governments.
Tinubu stated this on Friday, December 19, during the 15th National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC), comprising governors, National Working Committee (NEC) members, and other party leaders, at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja.
The president expressed his displeasure about governors withholding statutory allocations meant for local councils, saying that the continued non-compliance may force him to directly allocate local council funds from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).
He said: “The Supreme Court has capped it for you again, saying, ‘give them their money directly.’ If you wait for my Executive Order, because I have the knife, I have the yam, I will cut it.
“I’m just being very respectful and understanding with my governors. Otherwise, if you don’t start to implement it, FAAC after FAAC, you will see.”
Tinubu also reiterated that governors need to comply with the ruling of the Supreme Court, which is the apex court in the country.
He said: “The ultimate goal is our Supreme Court. We have to comply. We have to respect the judgment.”
The president’s remarks followed the July 11, 2024 judgment by the Supreme Court, which ruled in favour of the Federal Government’s suit seeking to enforce financial autonomy for local governments.
In a unanimous decision, a seven-member panel of the apex court declared that it is unconstitutional for state governments to retain or manage funds meant for local councils.
The court ordered the direct payment of allocations from the Federation Account to local governments, as provided for in Section 162(5-8) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), but widely flouted by most state governments through joint accounts.
