Ade Dosunmu Commends President Tinubu Over Local Government Financial, Administrative Authonomy
Former Director General of NIMASA as well as former Governorship candidate in Lagos State, Dr Ade Dosunmu has endorsed the proposal by the Federal Government to grant full Autonomy to the local governments in Nigeria describing it as a welcome development and long overdue.
In a statement he released to Journalists, Dosunmu commended the Federal government whose Attorney General Of The Federation, Lateef Fagbemi SAN has approached the Supreme Court to pursue this landmark initiative. According to Dosunmu” There is no doubt that our Democratic journey has been very slow due to lack of Autonomy for the third tier of government as practised in other Democratic climes”.
Furthermore he noted that the office of the Attorney General of the Federation should bear in mind the ambiguity in the 4th schedule and section 7 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which recognised local governments as the third tier of government but also in a contradictory manner gives some functions to State Government and Houses of Assembly with regards to Local Government Administration. This and other contradictory clauses need to be amended to reflect the complete financial and Administrative autonomy as it’s been operated in other federal systems. Dosunmu argued.
While commending the leadership of president Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR for this bold step he urged him to go all out to break this jinx by removing the clog in the wheel of our development and progress. In his words ” You can imagine the impact that will be created if 774 local governments are independent and free from the apron string of the state governments. Nigerians will immediately start enjoying the dividends of democracy directly across the country in all the 774 Local Governments and also have a say in determining the Political leadership at their Local Governments. The fact that every Nigerian lives in a local Government underscores the strategic importance of granting full autonomy to the Local Governments. The benefit of this initiative is huge and should be supported by all well-meaning Nigerians”.
Furthermore, the former NIMASA boss stated that the important benefit of this initiative is that it will attract more quality personalities to take part in the running of Local Governments and reduce the emphasis on the State and Federal Governments thereby widening the space for political inclusiveness. “This will invariably reduce the burden on Federal and State Governments allowing them to focus on broader policy issues” he avered.
Other benefits of Local Governments autonomy according to Dosunmu includes the power to govern and make decisions independently which can lead to efficient service delivery, it will also foster transparency and accountability as Local Governments will be responsible for their decisions, finances and actions leading to better governance. It will strengthen our democratic institutions by ensuring a more equitable distribution of power and resources. Also, Local Governments being the closest to the people are in a better position to understand the needs of their community and provide same hence he stated that granting full autonomy to local governments in Nigeria will lead to better governance, increased citizens participation, improved service delivery, and accelerate development at the grassroots level. This is no doubt the way to go in our determination to achieve good governance and development Dr Dosunmu postulated. How far his recommendation would be followed through remains to be seen but stakeholders say for a public policy expert, his views are very much in line with President Bola Tinubu’s administration agenda for the third tier of government. Time will tell.
https// www.south-south.com