RMAFC calls for full autonomy of local government councils

The Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) on Wednesday called for full autonomy for Local Government Councils (LGCs) to ensure efficient governance in the country.

The Chairman of the RMAFC, Mr Mohammed Shehu, made the call while addressing newsmane in Abuja.

According to Shehu, the call backs the Federal Government in its ongoing efforts to free LGCs from the firm control of state governments through legal means by giving effect to the provisions of constitution.

“The LGCs, as the third tier of government domesticated at the grassroots level, ought to be outside the control of state and Federal Governments as they were solely established to ensure effective governance at the grassroots level.

“The constitution of Nigeria recognises federal, state, and local governments as three tiers of government and the three recognised tiers of government draw funds for their operation and function from the federation account created by the constitution,” he said.

Shehu said that the state governments’ dominance over the affairs of LGCs emasculates their political, administrative and fiscal independence.

He emphasised on the LGCs inability to provide quality service delivery in the area of infrastructure and social services to the grassroots as provided for in the constitution.

He said that the political control of LGCs had made it virtually difficult and almost impossible for the masses to decide who becomes their leaders at that level of governance, which was closest to the people.

He added that the commission believed that giving full autonomy to LGCs would reduce the rate of poverty, rural-urban migration, and bring more dividends of democracy to the people.

“This will attract more qualified candidates for council elections that will improve the governance system at all levels in the long run.

“Full autonomy will engender good governance, transparency and accountability at the local level.

“ Security challenges like banditry, kidnappings, terrorism, electoral violence, among others will reduce to the barest minimum if the quantum of funds meant for local governments is channeled towards rural development.”

“ This will raise agricultural productivity, increase income generation, arrest rural-urban migration, create wealth and generally improve the socio-economic living conditions of the rural populace,” he said.

The chairman said that the current spate of insecurity in all parts of the country could be arrested if LGCs are granted full autonomy.

He said that as local government administration was the closest level of government for effective participation of population in the country in its governance system, it would avail the local population greater independence to determine their development needs.

He emphasised the importance of granting full autonomy to LGCs, allowing them to recruit, manage staff, raise finances, make bylaws, and discharge their functions without state government interference.

According to him, this will ensure their full bureaucratic autonomy.

Shehu said that financial autonomy of local government entailed the freedom to impose local taxation, generate revenue within its assigned sources.

He added that allocating its financial and material resources, would determine and authorise its annual budgets without external interference.

“It will relate to the disposition of tax powers, retention of revenue, and methods adopted in sharing centrally collected revenue by the constitutional responsibilities of all levels of government.

According to Shehu, it is worth noting that the constitution made it explicitly clear that there must be a democratically elected local government system in place.

“The constitution has not made provisions for any other systems of governance at the local government level other than democratically elected local government system.

“It is the position of the RMAFC that local governments should be granted fiscal autonomy by paying statutory allocations from the federation account directly to their coffers.

“The commission, therefore, fully supports the ongoing suit instituted by the Federal Government asking for an order permitting the funds standing in the credits of local governments to be directly channeled to them from the Federation Account”.

He said that RMAFC would continue to be a strategic partner in the efforts to reposition local government councils to discharge their constitutional responsibilities in the country.

He, therefore, called on Civil Society Organisations, (CSOs) and the media to be at the forefront of efforts to ensure that local government autonomy becomes a reality in Nigeria.