MY WORRIES ABOUT LOCAL GOVT AUTONOMY – R. O. Dode

A renowned professor of Political Science, with specialization in governance, Robert Dode, has hailed the recent Supreme Court judgement granting financial autonomy to Local Governments in the country.

Prof Dode, who is the first Deputy Vice Chancellor, (DVC) Academics, Dennis Osadebay University, Asaba, however, expressed fears that in practical terms the autonomy might not translate to an independent Local Government system because of the over bearing influence of the states on the third tier of government.

Speaking with Journalists in Asaba, the NUC accredited professor and first elected Dean, Faculty of Management and Social Sciences of the great institution of our pride,, noted that the Local Government had been not only a weeping, but also a non-existing baby, blaming the Constitution for giving overriding powers to the State and Federal Governments over the Councils.

He said though the grant looked good, it came with huge responsibilities, which the Council Chairmen must shoulder, especially the payment of Council staff and primary school teachers salaries, which had remained a major challenge to them.

The erudite scholar described the Supreme Court judgement as the beginning of a new dawn for the nation’s Local Government system, insisting that the autonomy must be made to work so that meaningful development could get to the grassroots where over 60 percent of Nigerians lived.

Prof Dode, who is also the National Financial Secretary of the Nigerian Political Science Association (NPSA) and Ogbarianrien 1 of Idjerhe Kingdom, charged the Local Government Chairmen to live in the midst of the people, shore up their Internally Generated Revenue profile, identify the pressing needs of the communities and address them within the limits of available resources, stressing that they must not have crowded agendas to be seen to be working.

He said all the Council Chairmen needed to do was to take development to the communities in batches and they would discover that the people would be patient and cooperate with them, urging that they must work together with their Vice Chairmen and Councillors to achieve set goals.

The governance expert commended Governor Sheriff Oborevwori for conceding to the Local Government autonomy, even before the Supreme Court judgement, adding that he had proven to be a true democrat by not constituting Caretaker Committees at the expiration of the tenure of the immediate past Council Chairmen in the state and for the conduct of Local Government elections barely four months after.