The efforts to implement local government autonomy in Nigeria are facing serious setbacks as many state governors are reportedly blocking council chairmen from opening accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). This move is seen as an attempt to prevent local governments from receiving their federal allocations directly, despite a Supreme Court judgment issued nearly nine months ago in favor of local government independence.
Following the court’s decision, the Federal Government created a panel to oversee the implementation process. One of its key recommendations was for the 774 local government areas (LGAs) across the country to open accounts with the CBN to receive their allocations without state interference.
However, the initiative has struggled due to what many sources describe as pressure and resistance from governors. Some governors are said to have warned council chairmen not to comply with the CBN directive.
A council chairman from a South-East state, who spoke to PUNCH, revealed that even after offering to remit 50% of their allocations to the governor in exchange for permission to open a CBN account, the proposal was rejected.
“Our governor has threatened us (all the chairmen in the state) not to open accounts with the CBN for the direct payment of our allocation”, one of the chairmen of South-East states, who pleaded anonymity, told one of our correspondents.
“We even tried to beg him, seeking to strike a deal, such that if he allows us to open the account with the CBN and our allocations are paid directly, we will remit 50 per cent of the LG allocation to him monthly, but he disagreed. So, this is where we are for now,” the LG chair added.
There are also technical and administrative barriers. In some regions, LGAs have been unable to meet the CBN’s requirement of submitting a two-month bank statement, largely because states manage the councils’ finances. A chairman in the South-West noted that their inability to produce such statements is a direct result of governors handling LG funds without involving the councils.
In states like Nasarawa, there appears to be more cooperation. The chairman of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) in the state, Adamu Sharhabilu, said that all council accounts had been opened with the hope of receiving direct allocations. Yet, he noted that no local government in the state has actually received money from the Federal Government. The money still goes to joint accounts controlled by the state.
Elsewhere, confusion persists. In Kwara State, Seun Oyinlade, chairman of the local NULGE chapter, said they are unaware of any local government having a CBN account. In Damaturu, a council staffer confirmed that salaries are still paid through the state’s Ministry for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs. In Yobe and Zamfara states, council chairmen confirmed they are waiting for further directives before opening any CBN accounts.
In contrast, Jigawa State’s ALGON chairman, Prof. Abdulrahman Salim, said the process is underway. He explained that most LGAs in the state are only waiting for biometric capturing by the CBN to finalize the process.
He said: “All 774 local government councils, including the 27 in Jigawa State, are expected to open dedicated accounts with the CBN for direct disbursement of funds from the Federation Account as we were directed.
“Jigawa State’s 27 local government areas are taking steps to open CBN accounts, which will enable them to receive direct allocations and manage their finances independently.”
“The CBN has been instrumental in facilitating local government autonomy by providing a platform for local governments to open accounts and receive direct allocations,” he stressed further.
“The delay in opening CBN accounts has been attributed to administrative bottlenecks, including the failure of the apex bank to fix a date for the biometric data capturing to complete the process.”
