LG Autonomy: Supreme Court Reserves Judgement On FG’s Suit Against 36 Governors
By Sunday Etuka, Abuja
The Supreme Court has Reserved Judgement on the suit filed by the Federal Government against the 36 State Governors seeking full autonomy for the 774 Local Governments.
A seven-man panel of the apex court led by Justice Garba Lawal reserved the judgment for later date on Thursday after the Attorney-Generals of the states, representing their governors submitted their briefs.
The governors through their respective Attorney-Generals asked the court to dismiss the suit, arguing that the Attorney-General of the Federation, and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi who filed the suit on behalf of the federal government lack the legal right to do so.
Recall that the federal government took the state governors to the Supreme Court over alleged maladministration of the local governments in the country.
In a suit filed by the Attorney-General of the Federation, and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, the federal government is demanding full autonomy for all the local government, and an order to restrain the state governors from unlawful dissolution of democratically elected local government Executives.
The suit is also seeking for an order to allow the local government get their shares directly from the federation account in line with the provisions of the constitution as against the current practice of joint accounts being operated by the governors.
It prayed the Supreme Court to stop the governors from constituting caretaker committees to run the affairs of local governments as against the constitutionally recognised and guaranteed democratic system.
