Financial Autonomy: EFCC, experts canvass transparency, accountability in Nigeria’s local councils

Some experts have called for robust mechanisms at the local government level to ensure transparency and accountability, in light of the new local government funding structure ordered by the Supreme Court.

The experts made the recommendation on Monday at the policy dialogue organised by Agora Policy, an Abuja-based think tank, in partnership with the BudgIT Foundation, Yiaga Africa, the Centre for Fiscal Transparency and Public Integrity, Premium Times, and The Cable.

The dialogue, themed “Enthroning Accountability in Local Governance in Nigeria,” was held at the Shehu Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja.

The experts, who were members of a panel of discussants at the event were Remi Aiyede, a professor of political institutions at the University of Ibadan; Samson Itodo, executive director of Yiaga Africa; executive director of Invictus Africa, Bukky Shonibare; and the Acting Director General of the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON), Salawu Ozigi, who represented the President of ALGON, Aminu Maifata.

The session was moderated by Nabillah Usman of Radio Now.

The dialogue was organised in response to the 11 July ruling of the Supreme Court, which authorised direct disbursement of federation allocations to the local government areas in the country.

The court also stripped the state governors of the power to dissolve elected local government councils and replace them with caretaker committees.

Panel discussion

Speaking on the latest developments in the local government system, Mr Itodo explained that the local government autonomy granted by the Supreme Court is insufficient without transparency and accountability.

He said there is a need for citizen engagement, citing the case of People’s Assembly as a model for participation in democracy.

“While financial autonomy has been granted to local government, it is insufficient. The real question is: Who is setting the priorities for the local governments in terms of the budget and the actions that local councils take?” Mr Itodo said.

In her submission, Mrs Shonibare said the gender component has not been given the necessary attention it deserves. She highlighted the decline in the number of women in elective positions.

“In 2015, the percentage of female representation at the local government level stood at 3.6 per cent. Invictus Africa did a survey and found out that there are 19 states with elected chairpersons, and within the 19 states, there are 355 chairpersons; only 16 are women. This sums up to just four per cent female representation.

“From 2015 to date, there’s only a 0.4 per cent improvement in female representation at the local government level, which is far from the 35 per cent inclusion we are asking for,” she said.

Mr Ozigi assured the audience that ALGON is working to ensure that funds transferred to the local governments do not find their way into the pockets of individuals.

“We are sure and ready to provide a financial framework for the 774 local governments to work with. We need to give them a template in terms of budgetary provisions and preparations.

“They need to know and follow what the federal and state governments do in terms of proper bookkeeping and accounting systems, annual audits, domestic reports from time to time, and independent audits by institutions responsible for financial crimes so that more funding is allocated and their responsibility is discharged within the law establishing the local government,” he said.

Speaking on human capacity at the level of the local governments, Mr Ozigi admitted that some of the local governments may not have the needed manpower, stating that there is a need to develop the capacity of the civil servants at the local government level.

We’re watching — EFCC

In his welcome remarks, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Olaonipekun Olukoyede, who was represented by the Director/Coordinator, Special Duties, Friday Ebelo, said the commission has its searchlight on the administrators of the local government.

He said there are major elements that must be established for the local governments to function as intended.

“Good governance encompasses three essential elements: accountability, transparency, and citizen participation. For these elements to be effective, we need dedicated and development-minded individuals to manage local government administrations,” he said.

Earlier in his opening remarks, the Executive Director of Agora Policy, Waziri Adio, said the level of trust in local government administration has declined significantly in the past couple of years.

“Only 28 per cent of citizens trusted local government administration, down from 58 per cent in 2000,” Mr Adio said while citing data from Barometre.

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He also called for “increased awareness, engagement, and accountability”, adding that “This requires vertical, horizontal, and diagonal accountability mechanisms.”

Some of the guests who spoke at the event included a former Minister of Youths and Sports, Bolaji Abdulahi and the Director General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lanre Issa-Onilu.