LG Financial Autonomy: Chairmen Not Allowed To Build Airports

Local government chairmen in the country have received stern warning not to mismanage funds belonging to local governments in the country.

Lateef Fagbemi, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, gave the warning on Thursday in Abuja, at the 2024 annual conference of the National Association of Judiciary correspondents stressing that they risk jail if they tamper with the funds.

He said the financial autonomy will allow the chairmen to discharge their duties effectively to their people.

According to the nation’s chief law officer, the LG chairmen have no immunity to protect them from prosecution, and as such they must think deeply before dipping their hands in the till.

Fagbemi also warned the chairmen that financial autonomy does not give them the rights to embark on bogus projects such as the construction of airports which do not directly benefit their people.

The AGF, according to analysts, was referencing some state governments which have embarked on the construction of airports, believed by many not to be a priority to their people.

Fagbemi stated this on Thursday in Abuja, at the 2024 annual conference of the National Association of Judiciary correspondents where he charged the council chairmen to fulfil their responsibilities effectively, adding that local governments play key roles in promoting grassroots development.

He explained that road construction and repairs, provision of primary health and education, are among the constitutional roles that LG chairmen should embark on.

He warned that “Projects like building airports, which are outside their scope, will not be tolerated,” saying they must be accountable with the resources put under their care.

The AGF stated, “If they choose to tamper with public funds and fail to deliver on their constitutional mandates, they risk going to jail. The trust placed in them must not be betrayed.

“Primary education must be accessible to every child, pregnant women and infants must receive quality healthcare, and the vulnerable in our society must benefit from sustainable welfare programmes.”

In July this year, the Supreme Court, in a landmark judgment, gave financial autonomy to the 774 local governments in the country, removing the third tier of government from the apron strings of the state governments which they had been tied to for years.