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The Vice Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in the 2023 election, Ahmed Buhari, has voiced his opposition to the widely celebrated Supreme Court judgment that granted financial autonomy to local governments in Nigeria.
Buhari believes that President Bola Tinubu is implementing this autonomy to secure political support at the grassroots level for the 2027 election.
Recently, Nigeria’s Supreme Court ruled that it is illegal and unconstitutional for governors to receive and withhold funds allocated to local government areas in their states. ‘
The court mandated that funds should be paid directly to local government councils by the federation.
Furthermore, the ruling stripped governors of the power to dissolve elected local government councils and replace them with caretaker committees.
Despite his support for local government autonomy, Buhari expressed scepticism about the motivations behind the judgment.
He argued that President Tinubu’s move aims to strengthen his political base at the grassroots level, potentially to counterbalance the influence of state governors who might contest against him in the future.
“It is a political move. So, if I want to come back to office in 2027, I might not necessarily win the loyalty of the governors because most of them might also want to contest against me. But if I can win the loyalty of the people at the grassroots where the real votes are, they know that the money comes directly from me to them. They have access to me. We are leaving the governors hanging and we can even remove the governors if we want,” Buhari stated during an appearance on Focus Nigeria, aired on AIT.
Buhari also raised concerns about potential misappropriation of funds by local government chairpersons, suggesting that they might face prosecution by anti-graft agencies similar to the issues faced by state governors.
He advocated for a technology-driven system to enhance accountability, transparency, and efficiency in governance.
“Now the federal government will know there is a misappropriation – they (council chairpersons) are messing up. Look, we gave you this (amount), and you only used two per cent for this project. Where is the 98 per cent? The federal government will now say we need something from you. Give us XYZ amount of support and votes for the next election – done,” he added.
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