Former Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose says nobody can become a local government chairman without the support of the serving governor of a state.
He said the state and local government tiers of government are inseparable and that no one can “take the baby from the mother”.
“While I love and I do not believe that any governor should take local government funds, may I say to you clearly this evening that you cannot take the baby from the mother,” Fayose said on Sunday.
“There is nobody that will become council chairman without a governor. Anybody telling you otherwise is wasting his time.”
The former governor and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was reacting to a Supreme Court judgement which granted financial autonomy to the third tier of government, ordering the Federal Government to pay the 20.60% monthly allocation of the 774 LGs in the country directly to their exclusive accounts and not to accounts controlled by governors.
The apex court in the landmark judgement on Thursday also barred power-drunk governors from dissolving democratically elected local government councils.
“While I am not against the judgement of the court, how realistic will that translate to the benefit of outside what it is today?” Fayose asked.
“As it is today, the situation will continue. You cannot tell me that I cannot coronate in terms of who becomes the chairman. Everybody looks up to the governor, and the governor allows communities in some places to go and pick people.”
The PDP chieftain described as an “illegality”, calls by some persons and groups that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should take over the conduct of local government elections from state-owned electoral umpires.
“You can’t put illegality in place by asking the federal INEC to take over the state INEC. That will be an illegality,” he said.
“The moment you want to take away the powers of a state, then you have deviated from the federal system of government where the state is as strong as the Federal Government on most matters.”
Fayose said no governor would allow his “enemies” to win local government chairmanship seats.
“Naturally, if you are on the same saddle, you will not allow your enemies to take over when there will be an election for you thereafter,” he said, adding that Nigeria’s democracy is just lip service.
Peoplesmind
