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LG allocations
LG allocations: S’ Court gives FG, Lagos Monday deadline
SUPREME Court
yesterday gave the Federal and Lagos State governments till next Monday to agree
on how the withheld salaries of teachers and local government workers in Lagos
will be released.
Chief Justice of the Federation, Justice
Muhammed Uwais, who presided over proceedings of the apex court, gave the order
at the hearing into the suit filed by the Lagos State Government challenging the
Federal Government’s decision to withhold its councils’ allocations.
Four other states, Ebonyi, Katsina,
Nasarawa and Niger were similarly affected by the Federal Government hammer.
Justice Uwais said that the decision on
both the Federal and Lagos governments was to offer relief to the suffering
workers.
President Olusegun Obasanjo had said that
he took the decision to withold allocations to councils in the five states to
protect the constitution which he said the states violated by creating new
councils without following due process and conducting election into the
councils.
Uwais, however, said that the court has
not determined the constitutional questions raised in the suit over the withheld
allocations and that the directive was on humanitarian ground.
The four other affected states were told
to file proper motion before the court so that they could be considered part of
the agreement.
At the resumed hearing, Lagos lead
counsel, Chief Rotimi Williams (SAN) moved a motion for amendment of the
originating summon to read that the withheld fund was for the benefit of the
local council and not the state as contained in the first motion.
Counsel to the Federal Government, Chief
Afe Babalola (SAN) opposed the amendment on the ground that it was not supported
by verifying affidavit and also urged the court to throw out the entire suit.
The court held that it could not rely on
mere skirmishes to throw out a matter that required constitutional
interpretation and which was of great importance to the country.
The motion for amendment was granted and a
cost of N1000 was awarded by the court in favour of the Federal Government.
Babalola sought adjournment of the case on
the ground that he would need 14 days to respond to the amendment originating
summon.
Chief Williams, who led a team of seven
Senior Advocates (SANS) and eight others, opposed the adjournment, saying that
the salary of teachers and local council staff in the state had not been paid
because of the withheld allocation.
He urged the court to take judicial notice of the
suffering the withdrawal had unleashed on the people and urged the court to
direct that the salaries of teachers and local council staff be released.
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