Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has called on State Houses of Assembly to speedily ratify the bill seeking total autonomy and devolution of powers to the Local Government Areas in the country.
The vice president made the call on Friday while delivering the โDistinguished Annual Lectureโ of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPPS), Kuru, near Jos.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the lecture was titled โSubnational Local Governance in Africa: Rethinking Policies, Frameworks and Institutionsโ.
Mr Osinbajo, who was represented by Chris Ngige, the Minister of Labour and Employment, said that local authorities play key roles towards nation building, but lamented that the third tier of government had over time been neglected and undervalued.
He maintained that the ongoing constitutional amendment seeking to allocate more powers to the local governments is a step in the right direction.
โWhile the roles of state governments and their scope of authority appear very well appreciated, local governments remain, in my view, quite undervalued, needing more attention from all of us, better funding, organisational and high quality leadership.
โAs we speak, a bill for local government autonomy is striving hard to pass the threshold of 24 votes required from state Houses of Assembly, a key milestone towards its passage.
โI believe that efforts being made, through the ongoing constitutional amendment, to cede more responsibilities for control and management of resources to local governments across the country reflect our understanding of how crucial it has become for this tier of government to take full charge of their responsibilities and functions at optimal capacity.
โAfter all, it is often argued that local government is closest to the people and best placed to impact on their lives,โ he said.
The vice president argued that local government fiscal autonomy would promote peace and security in country, adding that people at rural communities understand their terrain better and know how to deploy resources towards tackling security challenges.
He insisted that the yearning for local government autonomy is a step in the right direction and called on state assemblies to expedite actions toward ratifying the autonomy bill.
He added that the advantages that come with local government autonomy are obviously enormous, adding that it would further consolidate on Nigeriaโs democratic system.
โRatifying the bill that grants local governments fiscal autonomy in Nigeria is indeed a step in the right direction, and we encourage the yet-to-be decided voters from state assemblies to be considerate in this regard and speedily pass it.
The Emir of Kano, Aminu Ado-Bayero, who chaired the occasion, said that there is a strong nexus between effective local governance and sustainable development, hence Nigeria should not be left behind in this paradigm shift.
He maintained that an effective local authority would address poverty, hunger, inequality, insecurity, illiteracy, among other challenges currently facing the nation.
Earlier, Ayo Omotayo, the Director General of NIPPS, said the distinguished annual lecture was part of activities for the graduation ceremony of the instituteโs Senior Executive Course (SEC) 44.
