Centre LSD join forces with CSOs, media to push LG autonomy bill

ITRealms:

The African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development (Centre LSD) in collaboration with the Civil Society Organisations cum Media Roundtable drummed support for Local Government (LG) autonomy, reports ITRealms.

The one-day roundtable was organized in partnership with Christian Aid with funding from UKAID under her Voice to the People (V2P) project, on Thursday September 21, 2017 in Kaduna to galvanize CSOs and media in the North West geopolitical zone to sustain the momentum around the issue of Local Government Autonomy and push for the passage of the bill at the subnational stages leveraging on the current constitution review process.

The Programme Officer of the Centre, Mr. Vincent Dania, said that Local Government Financial Autonomy bill seeks to abolish the state-local government joint allocation which puts enormous finances and control in the hands of state governors.

“The bill, if passed, will have positive implications for development in Nigeria especially at the grassroots level, hence the need for its engagement at all levels is critical,” he said.

Dania, also noted that a financially autonomous local government system that recognizes the place of citizens’ participation in decision-making, will ensure not just the virility of local governments to deliver services at the grassroots level but also bring about widespread development to communities across the country.

He commended the senate for passing the bill on local government financial autonomy amongst others in the ongoing constitution review process, the release enjoined Civil Society Organizations, the media, social media influencers as well as all well-meaning Nigerian citizens to sustain the push at the subnational level  to ensure the bill (s) scales through with their relevant provisions not tinkered with during the review stage by legislators at the State level.

As said by him, this was in the interest of the federalist principles Nigeria has opted for, and for ensuring that the local government, which is the arm of government that is closest to the people, performs her statutory function of being the engine of community and rural development.

He enjoined all well-meaning Nigerian citizens to share their opinions and contribute to the deliberations on social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp to name a few.

Uboshe Uboshe/GEE

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