Supreme Court reserves judgment on FG’s bid for local government autonomy

The Supreme Court has deferred its decision on the Federal Government’s lawsuit against 36 state Governors over the autonomy of Nigeria’s 774 local government areas. The government seeks full autonomy for these local governments, a matter now under the court’s deliberation.

During proceedings on Thursday, a seven-member panel headed by Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba announced the reservation of judgment. The court assured stakeholders that the ruling date will be communicated in due course, following the adoption of final addresses and submissions by legal representatives.

The federal government, represented by Attorney General of the Federation Lateef Fagbemi in case SC/CV/343/2024, advocates for preventing state Governors from unilaterally dissolving democratically elected local government leaders. The government also seeks direct allocation of local government funds from the Federation Account, bypassing what it terms as unlawful joint accounts managed by governors.

Furthermore, the government urges the court to prohibit Governors from instituting Caretaker Committees at local government levels, asserting this practice violates constitutional provisions on democratic governance.