A civil society group, League of Igbo Youth Lawyers otherwise LIYOLAW has hailed the recent Supreme Court judgement granting financial autonomy to local government areas and councils in the country, and upholding democratic structures at the third tier of government.
In a communique issued in Awka and made available to newsmen on Thursday, July 18, 2024, and signed by the national secretary of the group Barr Obinna Asiegbu, the group observed that the local government system had been emasculated by years of suffocation and deprivation by states, and that development had become amputated at that level in consequence of the abridgment of democracy at the grassroots.
The group commended the federal government led by President Ahmed Bola Tinubu for going the extra long mile in exploring judicial interpretation of the necessary provisions of the 1999 constitution which paved the way for the recent decision and orders of the Supreme Court in the matter. The communique observed that the recent decision of the apex court which was hinged on judicial activism and radical interpretation has rescued democracy at the grassroots level and has restored constitutional democracy to the local governments. It called on the federal government to ensure strict compliance with the orders contained in the supreme court decision, and to pay directly to local governments sums standing to credit of local governments from monthly disbursement of funds from the federation account.
In a different telephone chat, President of the association, Stanley I. Okafor Esq noted that state governors in Nigeria had constituted themselves clogs in the wheel of advancement of democracy in the country by emasculating local government autonomy and stealing local government funds, including those meant for the judiciary. He called for further mechanism to ensure that funds meant for judiciary of states were extricated from the claws of state governors, and promised that the group would soon blacklist states holding on to judiciary funds.
In the same vein, the group noted that the election to the office of President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), slated to hold next Saturday, July 20, 2024, held mixed promises for the nation as the NBA continues to occupy pivotal position as mouthpiece of the common man in Nigeria. It bemoaned the relegation of the hitherto exalted values of the NBA to a mere jamboree seeking association producing mainly rubber stamps to politicians as it’s leaders, and underscored that only one of the current contenders to the office of President of NBA in the person of Chuka Ikwuazom SAN met the ideals and expectations of the group, and noted especially his commitment to confronting the establishment which he made during the debate amongst presidential contenders on July 11, 2024. “Whereas we are convinced and satisfied that Chuka Ikwuazom SAN demonstrated clear will to ask questions and probe national issues and take the political class to task with regard to respect for the rule of law and democratic ideals therefore we adopt him as choice candidate for the NBA presidential election slated for July 20, 2024” , the communique read
