A civic organisation – Ondo Redemption Front has charged the state Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa on total autonomy for local government administration to allow for grassroots development.
The civic organisation which is committed to truth and accountability noted that this was to compliment the Federal Government’s desire in ensuring that effective governance was enhanced through effective local government administration.
Chairman of the organisation, Ayodeji Ologun, made the call at the group’s September Edition of its State of state address in Abuja.
Ologun said that as a group of concerned lawyers, the group had earlier raised serious concerns regarding the state of healthcare, governance, infrastructure, and financial accountability in Ondo state.
He said: ‘Ordinarily, we ought to have had this press conference in Akure but our deep concern to draw the attention of the Federal Government on the Local Government funds in Ondo State have brought us here.
‘You will recall that the Attorney General of the Federation sometimes approached, the Supreme Court in order to give life to our Local Governments. The reliefs sought by the Federal Government for our Local Government were granted.
‘The Attorney General assured Nigerians and by extension Ondo State people that our local governments will have an independent way of accessing their funds directly from the federation account for effective local government administration.’
Ologun added: ‘We hereby call on the Federal Government and the Attorney General of the Federation to revisit the implementation of the Supreme Judgment on Local Government autonomy.
Ologun said that true governance demanded listening, planning, and acting decisively.
He said that the group was worried about the implementation of some programmes which have little benefit to the people instead of strengthening community participation and resolving long-standing conflicts through dialogue.
The Ondo Redemption Front, therefore, called for the immediate and unconditional release of Local Government funds to all the Local Government in Ondo state as released by the federal government through the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).
Also speaking, Co-Chairman of the Ondo Redemption Front, Mogbojuri Kayode said: ‘Citizens should not be at the mercy of governance. It is only right for the government to tell us how the Ondo state funds have been used so far. ‘It is the right of the people for the government to disclose this information.’