By Oludamisi Ojo
The Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) on Monday described governors opposing full autonomy for the operations of the 774 local governments in the county as enemies of the masses.
According to the Union, Nigeria’s problems of train Attacks, killings, unemployment, hunger, kidnappings, insurgency, and drug abuse being perpetrated by youth would be tackled headlong with a functional and responsive local government system.
The NULGE President, Ekiti chapter, Babatunde Olatunde spoke in Ado Ekiti, on Monday, at a media parley sponsored by a Civil Society Organisation named Social action.
This is to galvanize support for the passage of the Local Government Autonomy Bill pending before State Assemblies.
Olatunde pointed out that LGs all over the world are regarded as development centers, regretting that the springboards had been destroyed by state governors due to selfishness and personal aggrandizement.
His words: “Governors opposing full autonomy for the 774 councils were doing so for selfish reasons and I consider them as enemies of the people, enemies of our nation”.
The NULGE boss quoted the “Bible” verse, saying that when the foundation is destroyed, what would the righteous do.
He lamented that the local government system has been relegated, saying “no wonder our youth are engaging in ritual killings, banditry, kidnappings yahoo yahoo because the foundation upon which we are built had been destroyed.
Olatunde said the continued challenges of insecurity, insurgency, and corruption are largely traced to the systematic destruction of the local governments, stressing that all these social vices staring us in the face were not there before 1999.
He maintained that the only solution to all these is local government autonomy.
The NULGE chair said qualitative education, infrastructure facelift, peace, and youth employment that had eluded the country could only be restored if LGs are granted administrative and financial autonomy like the judiciary sector.
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Olatunde said ” Enough of not respecting the tenure of council officials, enough of LGs not having the full financial benefit of their monthly allocations. 75 percent of the people live in the rural areas and that should be a basis for our councils to be fully operational”
According to him, the bill is now at the doorstep of the Houses of Assembly, we are crying loud and clear that they should pass it in the interest of over 75 percent living in the rural areas. They should come to the aid of Nigerians. We are not here talking about salary increment, but talking about how to fix Nigeria”.
The socialization, represented by Mrs. Tokunbo Adedeji, described local governments as the closest to the people, stressing that the state Assemblies should fast rack action on the passage of the bill in the interest of Nigerians.
