Gov. Fayemi and His Campaign against Local Government Autonomy By Olaogun Michael

The recent and vehement campaign by the Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, and the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) against the Local Government autonomy is suspicious and calls for great concern by all and sundry at the time Nigeria needs solutions from all the forms of avoidable tragedies that have brought her to her knees. Fayemi had on different occasions argued against the “non-existence” of Local Government. In his recent conversation on the Channels television, he claimed that the constitution of Nigeria does not recognize LGA as the third tier; “Local Government is not a tier of government, but an administrative vehicle…” He further argued that “federalism is a two-tier government.” Contrary to his opinion, sections 7, 8, and 162(3-8) of the 1999 Constitution as amended gave due recognition to the existence, funding, and administrative management of the Local Government. If the local government is not a tier of government (the third) ...