Lawmaker warns against further amendment of constitution

Abia North Senator, Orji Kalu, has warned the National Assembly against amending the 1999 Constitution on local government autonomy, stating that the verdict of the Supreme Court is sufficient on the matter.

Mr Kalu spoke at a panel session on local government autonomy organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Constitution Review.

The dialogue was aimed at collating the views of all stakeholders on local government autonomy as part of the ongoing constitutional amendment by the National Assembly.

In a verdict delivered in July, the Supreme Court declared the joint account illegal and ordered that funds for local governments must be paid directly into their accounts from the federation account.

During the panel session, Mr Kalu, a former governor of Abia State, emphasised that the Supreme Court’s decision on the matter is sufficient.

He cautioned his colleagues in the National Assembly against making further alterations, arguing that the Supreme Court’s declaration already constitutes an amendment.

“I am not a lawyer, but the judgement of the Supreme Court is an amendment of the Constitution. Nobody should do anything. The National Assembly has no reason to amend anything,” Mr Kalu, an APC member, said.

He added, “In my opinion, anywhere in the world, when the Supreme Court of any country makes a pronouncement that any part of the law is null and void, it becomes the law.”

Reflecting on his tenure as governor, Mr Kalu claimed that he never tampered with local government funds.

When asked by the moderator what has changed, he responded, “Possibly greed.” He noted that perhaps governors had become greedy and started interfering with local government funds.

“I don’t know what has changed. Possibly greed, because we were always reminded that the local government fund is meant for the local government, and the state government fund is meant for us.

“These are the things we said at the level of the governors’ forum. We have always made it clear there are three tiers of government. We don’t have two tiers,” he stated.

Mr Kalu’s claim of not interfering with local government funds was corroborated by two other former governors on the panel—Adams Oshiomhole and Adamu Aliero, former governors of Edo and Kebbi states, respectively. Both also claimed that they never tampered with local government funds.

In his contribution, Mr Aliero stated that his administration had a sophisticated system to prevent any mismanagement of local government funds.

He added that then-President Olusegun Obasanjo was very strict about the management of local government allocations from the federation account.

Mr Aliero also claimed that his government conducted “credible” local government elections, during which the opposition won some councillor seats but never a chairmanship. This comment elicited laughter from the audience, to which Mr Aliero responded, “They won about 30 councillor seats, which is a far cry from what is happening now.”

Why I gave by deputy supervisory role— Oshiomhole

Mr Oshiomhole, a former president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), reiterated that he did not interfere with local government funds. He noted that he allowed local governments to use their funds freely, provided they prioritised the payment of teachers’ salaries.

The former governor, who now represents Edo North Senatorial District, stated that the Office of the Deputy Governor handled the supervision of local governments in Edo State during his tenure.

“In Edo State, we did not interfere with the revenue accruing to each local government. The actual amount was declared at the FAAC level, so each local government knew what was accruing to it.

“I decided, as the state governor, that I would have nothing to do with the local government. They were to be supervised by the Deputy Governor’s Office.

“I interfered only to dictate that whatever they wanted to do, they were free to do, provided they paid teachers’ salaries, which, under the Constitution, is the responsibility of local governments.

“Once they had paid the teachers, if they decided not to pay their own employees, that was their business. However, I would not accept that, in the name of autonomy, funds meant for local government workers would be mismanaged while primary school teachers remained unpaid,” he said.

Mr Oshiomhole also raised concerns about the management of the local government workforce. He noted that under the current system, local governments do not control their employees, as that authority is vested in the Civil Service Commission.

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He warned that this lack of control could create significant challenges for local governments, such as overstaffing, which might result in most of their funds being spent on salaries.

“Local governments don’t even have the power to employ, discipline, or transfer their employees. That power is vested in the Local Government Commission,” he said.

The event was attended by representatives of the Council of Speakers of the Houses of Assembly, the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), traditional rulers, and others.