FG drags 36 states to Supreme Court over local govt autonomy
The Federal Government has sued the thirty-six governors before the Supreme Court to ensure total autonomy of the nation’s local governments.
D’Gallery gathered that the suit marked SC/CV/343/2024, was filed on May 20, by the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) on behalf of the federal government.
The government is praying the Apex Court for an order prohibiting state governors from unilateral, arbitrary, and unlawful dissolution of democratically elected leaders for local governments.
The FG also prayed the Supreme Court for an order to ensure that Federal Government allocations due to local governments are paid directly to them from the federation account in line with the provisions of the constitution as against the alleged unlawful joint accounts created by governors.
It is also seeking an order stopping governors from constituting caretaker committees to run the affairs of local governments as against the constitutionally recognized and guaranteed democratic system.
Also, the federal government wants an order of injunction restraining the governors, their agents, and privies from receiving, spending or tampering with funds released from the Federation Account for the benefit of local governments when no democratically elected local government system is put in place in the states.
