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ALGON: Winning the battle for council financing
By Dennis Mernyi
Special
Correspondent, Abuja
The Association
of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON)’s recent strive for prominence,
relevance and independence indeed started since its inception, almost six years
ago. When it started, many political analysts predicted an immediate doom,
which according to them, would befall the then perceived radical organisation
as a group planning to formidably establish a parallel government structure to
antagonise the already existing ones.
But things turned
out differently when the association, in its fresh spirit of unionism and
aspiration to meet its goal, launched its first and famous security strategy
“The 1,000 ALGON Jeeps” distributed to all 774 local government
areas and shared among its key officers. Those who also got these vehicles
included police chiefs and other top government functionaries across the
country. The 1,000 jeeps became the first controversy that launched the
association into the limelight in 2001. At the heat of the controversy, even
the police authorities to which the jeeps were specifically allocated at
various local council areas, joined the minority chanting war songs for the
head of ALGON. Then the public was, according to its founding member and first
president, the late Joseph Jella “pitched against the association even
though the purpose for the purchase of the jeeps was part of the
association’s social contract to the people to ensure maximum security
for the people”.
Though, ALGON
later survived the hurdle as many Nigerians and indeed the government at all
levels and the police later admitted to the importance of the scheme as it
benefited the people.
Another major
battle that engulfed ALGON was over the tenure of the elected council
executives. This was a constitutional matter though in the chambers of the
Supreme Court, the nation’s apex law court, the ruling did nothing much
to favour the prayers of ALGON as still their tenures terminated only after the
third year against the fourth year as the association canvassed. In the place
of elected local council executives, transitional administrators were
introduced to run the councils from 2002 to 2003 when they handed over to
another elected officers. By implication, ALGON lost the battle. However,
struggle for survival and attainment of independence by the association
continues in that same spirite even when its activist President Jella died.
For over a year, in some cases, after the three years tenure of the past ALGON
executive members, only the memories of ALGON remained in the people’s
minds, and of course some of its physical structures, like the ALGON Guest
House on Yedseram Street, Maitama, Abuja, the ALGON jeeps, that is some that
are still carrying ALGON inscriptions.
Of course, for
the antagonists of the association, it was better dead. Yet ALGON reincarnated
after two years. This time around, right from the start, it has been described
as fire-for-fire for the battle over its credibility.
This time, it is
under the leadership of yet another crusader, Baver Dzeremo, one of the few
surviving national officials of the association. Dzeremo was the
association’s deputy national publicity secretary and its founding
member.
On assumption of
office on July 2, 2004 as the national president of the association, Dzeremo at
one of his first major public outings on July 27, 2004 at an orientation
seminar organised on national security, NEEDS, accountability and the new
insurance pension scheme at the International Conference Centre, Abuja,
re-echoed the sad experience of May 29, 2002 when the Supreme Court upheld the
three-year tenure of local councils in the country and consequently both the
chairmen, their vices and councilors had their tenures terminated, which led to
the subsequent dissolution of the National Executive Council of ALGON.
At the seminar,
direct funding of the local councils by the federal government, adequate
funding and other topical issues that would appropriately enable an effective
and more efficient local government administration were emphatically
highlighted by Dzeremo. He clearly stated that the association had within that
period already made strong representation to the Revenue Mobilization
Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) on the need for a much higher share of
the Federation Account for the local councils than other tiers of government.
The point ALGON
is now dragging home is that, the local councils have more responsibilities to
cater for in the face of the vulnerable rural populace than both the federal
and state governments put together.
Because of the
huge financial burden, other social responsibilities and commitments to ensure
service delivery to the rural areas, another summit has ended in Abuja, also
organised by (ALGON) and the (RMAFC). The need to adequately fund the local
councils in the federation dominated discussion.
In fact, in his
keynote address at the summit, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National
Chairman, Chief Audu Ogbeh, instructed the councils, whose allocations through
the Joint Account policy devised by the RMAFC on the basis of the constitutional
provisions, to seek redress in the law court.
By implication,
Ogbeh’s remark means that, it is illegal for any state government by
whatever reason, to siphon or deduct any kobo meant for local government.
No wonder, even
the RMAFC has already taken the matter to court challenging such acts of
illegal tempering and deduction from council funds by the states through the
privilege of Joint Account policy.
According to
Ogbeh, it is indeed an unfortunate development for some states to be perpetrating
such acts since the constitutional provision for the State/Local Government
Joint Account was not intended to be an avenue for local governments funds to
be siphoned or deducted. Now, the local councils can sue whoever tampers with
their funds as Ogbeh urged that “my candid advice to those local
governments affected negatively by the operation of this account is to seek
redress from the law court”.
Ogbeh’s
statement indeed carries weight, being the national chairman of the leading
political party in the country. As it is said, “the flock hears and obeys
its shepherd”, it is hoped that the governors perpetrating the act will
stop, and if any one ignores it, he should be dragged to the court.
Similarly, Chief
Kanu Agabi (SAN), Special Adviser to President Olusegun Obasanjo on Good
Governance, who chaired one of the sessions at the summit, said no state had
the right to keep local council money for whatever reason as it is against the
constitution.
According to
Agabi, except for the fear by some of the local government chairmen who did not
win election but were assisted to their seats by their governors, local
governments have the right according to law which gave them autonomy to
function independently in all aspects, including council financing.
In defence of his
colleagues and what ALGON stands for, Dzeremo dispelled the insinuations that
local government functionaries do sit and share their allocations, maintaining
that under the current partisan political system, the local government
functionaries strive to maintain high degree of accountability, probity and
transparency. He said their financial transactions are guided by the new model
of financial memorandum. The allegation of financial reckless at the local
government level, he said, is largely untenable and false.
Dzeremo condemned
that using that allegation as a basis for determining or limiting the amount of
revenue that would accrue to the local governments would be most unjustifiable,
inequitable and unfortunate.
The arguments
advanced on why more funds should be allocated to the councils, Dzeremo said,
included the increasing responsibilities of the local government councils, the
phenomenal increase in the number of councils from 301 to 774, the large
primary school enrolment necessitating the provision of more school buildings,
teachers, furniture and other equipment. Others are the demand for rapid
urbanisation in terms of roads, medical services, water supply, electricity,
rural communication system and the burden of insecurity in the face of numerous
ethnic, religious and other conflicts in the local government areas.
Indeed, ALGON
might have sent its message across. The summit resolved that the local
councils are under-funded and recommended that they should be duly represented
on the Federation Accounts Allocation Committee and that a constitutional
review of the terms of the state/local government joint account be undertaken
to reflect the desired autonomy of the local councils.
Also giving
credibility to the summit is the RMAFC collaboration and participation in the
entire programme.
The summit also
recommended that apart from monitoring the accruals and disbursement of revenue
from the federation account, the RMAFC/ALGON should monitor the judicious
application of the funds to local governments and that the councils should
enjoy a uniform four-year tenure as other tiers of government.
If ALGON
succeeds in this yet another campaign to fight for the right and proper
position of the local government administration in the country, it will go into
the history of the country that a pressure group has developed into a
formidable championing the cause of the rural populace where less attention is
usually given to their plight.
Now, that the
battle line is finally drawn between ALGON and those who sit on the funds of
the local councils, the political institutions in the country seem poised to
support ALGON against them.
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