We Have No Plans To Tamper With Local Government Funds – Gov Otti

By Suleiman  Anyalewechi

The Abia State Government on Saturday, October 26, 2024 stoutly distanced itself from any  planed legislation aimed at undermining the Supreme Court verdict affirming the financial independence of Local Governments in Nigeria.

This is even as it called on the State workforce to caution the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, in the State over its growing penchant for leveling unfounded allegations.

The Source reports that the State Government’s  denial is coming on the heels of allegations from some sections of the Abia populace, particularly the opposition that the Government has gone the way of Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra state to enact a law intended to subject Local Councils Funds to the control of the Governor.

The opposition had insisted that the Executive arm, led by Governor Alex Otti, had transmitted a bill to that effect and had also gone ahead to browbeat the widely perceived lame duck House of Assembly into passing the bill earlier in the week.

Instructively, the leadership of the NLC in the State joined in the accusations, calling on ALGON and NULGE officials to resist any piece of legislation that seeks to make councils accessible to state Government abuse.

Only on Wednesday October 23, opposition in the State pointedly informed that the controversial bill has indeed been passed by the Labour party headed Abia Assembly leadership.

However, it was quick to salute the courage,and sense of responsibility exhibited by about 12 Peoples Democratic Party PDP Lawmakers who reportedly staged a walk out during the passage of the bill.

The allegations of the opposition was somewhat confirmed with the NLC letter of Thursday October 24 alerting the umbrella bodies of Local Government political leaders – ALGON and NULGE – to the alleged passage of the offensive bill.

The NLC’s position was, however, enough to force a response from  the  leadership of the State legislative body .

At a media briefing on Thursday, in Umuahia ,the Deputy Speaker, Rt Hon Okezie Meregini, rejected claims of  the passage of a bill meant to continue controlling Council funds by the Governor.

The Deputy Speaker who is, also, the House Committee Chairman on Information, informed that what was forwarded to the Lawmakers was a bill that will benefit the Local Governments without necessarily eroding their financial autonomy.

“The bill is for the  establishment of the Abia State Rural Access Road Agency which is part of the World Bank’s Rural Access and Agricultural Market Project RAAMP and  similar bills have already been passed in states like Ebonyi, Kwara and Sokoto with RAAMP receiving funding from World Bank, the International Finance Agency IFA and the French Agency for Development AFD .” a statement issued by the Governor’s Adviser Ferdinand Ekeoma on Saturday October 26, quoted the Deputy Speaker as saying.

According to  Ekeoma, the Deputy Speaker further noted that both State and Local Governments are expected to contribute counterpart funding for road construction but assured that it does not translate to the State controlling councils funds.

” He ( Deputy Speaker) dismissed the false claim that some members of the House staged a walk out and made it clear there was no walkout as all members, including the opposition, were present during the session”, the Governor’s media aide further quoted Rt Hon Meregini as saying.

Furthermore, Ekeoma expressed regret that the  NLC leadership in the State could proceed to issue a letter on the said bill without caring to avail itself the correct information.

“Shouldn’t a reputable body like the NLC have written to the House to obtain the correct information instead of hastily rushing to the media to misrepresent the Government and misinform the public ?

“Shouldn’t the authors of the letter have been more careful, more cautious and more informed before speaking on the issue?

“The Government wishes to remind the NLC leadership in the state that exhibiting unprovoked hostile disposition and acting maliciously and irrationally based on misinformation from rumour mongers to the point of distorting or challenging Government’s noble polices and programmes geared towards advancing the welfare of all Abians is an unpopular route they shouldn’t travel through because Abia workers are discerning enough to differentiate  between media clout chasing and pro-people altruism”,  part of the Government’s state reads.