Nigerian Govt explains why it is yet to pay allocations directly to LGs

The Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, on Thursday disclosed that the Federal Government is yet to commence payment of monthly allocations to the local governments.

Edun explained that the development is due to some “practical impediments”.

He spoke during the quarterly media briefing on recent economic activities in the country.

This comes weeks after the Supreme Court ordered the Nigerian Government to directly pay allocations to local government accounts.

The Supreme Court said it was illegal for state governments to receive allocations on behalf of local governments.

The landmark judgement, delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, emphasized that the practice contravenes the financial autonomy of local governments and has persisted for over two decades.

The apex court’s decision mandates that all allocations from the Federation Account should henceforth be paid directly to the 774 local government councils across the country, rather than being filtered through state governors.

However, the Coordinating Minister of Economy said the judgment was yet to be handed over to the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) for proper study and implementation.

Edun said a committee has been set up by the Federal Government to look at the practicability of the judgement.

“The actual proceeding has not been handed down to the AGF,” Edun said.