The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has pledged that his administration will ensure that funds allocated to Nigeria’s local governments are paid directly to the councils immediately after he assumes office as President.
Atiku made the commitment in a statement issued by his official spokesperson, Kenneth Okonkwo, and shared on X on Tuesday.
The former Vice President said his administration would uphold the rule of law and guarantee the constitutional independence of all tiers of government, including local governments.
Atiku also referenced the Supreme Court judgment delivered in July 2024 on the financial autonomy of local governments, accusing the administration of President Bola Tinubu of failing to enforce the judgment.
According to him, the alleged failure was aimed at avoiding confrontation with state governors who previously controlled local government funds.
The statement partly read, “My administration will respect court judgments, protect local government autonomy, ensure that public funds reach the people for whom they are meant, and restore true federalism.
“This move will ensure that development is brought to the grassroots, reduce poverty at the level of government nearest to the people, and guarantee financial independence to the local governments which will increase their capacity to fight crimes and terrorism at that level.”
Atiku alleged that the Tinubu administration’s position was influenced by political considerations ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
He claimed that state governors were being allowed to retain control of local government funds as an incentive to support Tinubu’s re-election bid.
“This is not the Nigeria we should accept,” the former Vice President stated.
In July that two years after the Supreme Court ordered the direct payment of federal allocations to local government councils, implementation of the landmark financial autonomy judgment remains stalled despite N10.48tn being allocated to the third tier of government within the period
