The Kwara State House of Assembly last week stirred the hornet’s nest when it passed a law to stop the incoming administration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from dissolving local government councils’ chairmen they would inherit. HEAD POLITICS, MUMINI ABDULKAREEM write on the issue and how it has divided the polity.
Last week Tuesday, the Kwara State House of Assembly passed a bill to stop the executive arm of government from dissolving elected council chairmen in the 16 local government areas of Kwara state before the expiration of their tenure.
The Bill for a law to amend the Kwara State Local Government (Amendment) Law No. 3 of 2006, was sponsored by Hon Kamal Fagbemi representing Oke-Ogun state constituency of Oyun local government of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Speaking during the consideration of the general principles of the amendment Bill, Fagbemi said the amendment became imperative in view of the fact that the principal law was inconsistent with the provision of the 1999 Constitution and further added that Section 7 of the 1999 Constitution guarantees that Local Government shall be governed democratically, stressing that provision of section 18 of the State Local Government law no 3 of 2006 was not in tandem with the provision of the nation’s constitution.
According to him, the Supreme Court judgement in respect of dissolution of Local Government Councils by Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State, was illegal and unconstitutional, pointing out that the decision of the apex court, according to 1999 Constitution, shall be enforced in any part of the federation by all authorities, persons and by Court of subordinate jurisdiction.
Other lawmakers in their contributions described as unconstitutional the dissolution of democratically elected councils in some states and that the current arrangement making Local Government Councils appendage of the state governments was against the wish of the founding fathers, aiming to make Local Government administration, a third tier of government to fast track grassroots development in the country.
The Deputy Speaker, Matthew Okedare, who presided over the sitting, directed the Clerk of the House, Hajia Halimat Kperogi, to prepare a clean copy of the bill for Governor’s assent, adding that the third tier of government was strategic to accelerated socio-economic transformation at the grassroots in the state.
While the bill is waiting for the assent of Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed, which will make dissolution of elected councils unconstitutional by any executive arm of government in power, the issue has attracted differing reactions from members of the opposition APC and ruling PDP in the House among other stakeholders.
The last local government election in Kwara State was held on 17 November, 2017 giving the 16 elected councils chairmen 3-year tenure of office. But in most parts of the country, elected governors have always dissolve local government councils for the appointment of caretaker committee whose tenure are vulnerable to sack at any time by the governor. It was based on this premise that the party leaders and stakeholders have argued along the divide line as to the action of the state legislature. While some have situated the action in the realm of the latest political development in the state, others even from the opposition have lauded the decision of the lawmakers, saying it would guaranty stability at that tier of government. According to some of the narratives, caretaker committee appointees can be relieved of their appointment at any time. But under the new arrangement, those of them that are going for election, will go all out with the conviction that they will serve out their full tenure instead of constantly watching their backs for possible sack any time. At most times, caretaker appointees usually spend 6-months before the executive appoint another set of people to complete the year long circle in a move that had been described as a form of patronage for party officials.
According to the former chairmen of the All Local Government Association of Nigeria (ALGON), Barrister Abdullateef Okandeji, the action of the lawmakers will check executive recklessness and the affirmation of the rule of law.
Okandeji in a text message to this reporter noted that the action will “Check executive recklessness, affirmation of rule of law in line with the Supreme Court decision on the case that emanated from Ekiti State”.
On his part, the chairman of the Kwara State PDP, Engr Kola Shittu, noted that the action of the House is even commonsense and rational in the light of the abuse some of the council chairmen have faced and advised the governor-elect to allow the serving council chairmen in the state complete their tenures.
“Normally, without even making any law, it makes sense that any elective position and those in commission that the constitution has set a time limit for their tenures, I would not expect a governor-elect to come and dissolve them.’
“Similarly, when you talk of elective positions especially local government election, it is in the constitution that they are guaranteed their tenures for the mandate given to them for certain number of years. Nobody can disrupt that mandate, that is common sense.
“And if that is so, if the KWHA now make a law to back it up, does it not make sense? Whatever we are saying (on this issue), we should have common sense, and not to just continue to argue about things. That is why we have problem in Nigeria and other developing countries.
“If those coming to take over now work very well, the populace can elect them and if they didn’t meet up to the expectations, they can be change. So my advice is that the incoming government should allow those that had been elected to complete their tenure, simple. I don’t see any argument about that. If we want peace in Nigeria, we should follow things constitutionally by law, now that the House of Assembly has made the law…, I think it should be respected. I don’t know the incoming governor and his antecedents, but if I were him, I would allow them complete their tenure. It will encourage people who are going for election to know that once they are elected, they will complete their tenure and encourage them to work hard, it will have a good impact and the electorate will vote people who they think can serve them very well, he submitted.
But for the opposition APC, the action of the House is an exercise in futility and whatever law they embark upon can be amended if the next administration comes into place.
Speaking during a telephone chat on the issue Saturday, the Spokesman of the Kwara State chapter of the APC, Alhaji Tajudeen Aro added that his party will not do anything that will be unconstitutional regarding the issue when it takes over the mantle of leadership in the state.
“This action is an exercise in futility because the lawmaker’s power ends after the end of their tenure and whatever law they embarked upon may be amended if they (incoming lawmakers ) don’t key into it as well.
“But the most unfortunate thing is that this is an obnoxious law they promulgated in 2016 and it is under that law that they subjected us to all the autocratic governance, particularly at the local government level. It is only now that they are going that they now realise that the bill is not good for Kwara state.
“This law will go nowhere because they are just wasting their time and we believe they did what they did because of some cover ups at the local government level. We have respect for the rule of law and we have respect for the constitution and we all know that the House of Assembly or state governor cannot just dissolve the local government. But our question is this, is it not what they have used to dissolve so many local governments in the state and suspended some elected local government chairmen. So I see no reason why they, …it is not for them to amend the law because whether they amend it or not, the incoming lawmaker will know what to do as regards the local government administration in the state… But when we resume, the incoming lawmakers know what to do but I want to assure you that we are not going to contravene the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in whatever decision we are going to take”, he submitted.
