NULGE Urges Tinubu to Implement Local Government Autonomy

The National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to urgently implement the Supreme Court judgment from July 2024, which affirmed the financial autonomy of Nigeria's 774 local governments. The Supreme Court's unanimous ruling, delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, mandates that local governments receive their allocations directly from the Accountant-General of the Federation.

President Tinubu had previously indicated at a December meeting of the All Progressives Congress National Executive Committee that he would consider an Executive Order to enforce compliance with the ruling. NULGE President General, Comrade Aliyu Kankara, stated that the responsibility for implementing the judgment lies with the Federal Government, not the state governors, and warned that delays in implementation would hinder rural development and exacerbate governance issues.

Kankara emphasized the importance of a viable local government system for national governance and indicated that NULGE may return to the Supreme Court to seek enforcement of the ruling if necessary.