Local government autonomy and development of localities in. Local government autonomy latest breaking news from nigeria. The 1976 local government reforms was the third in the series of the local government reforms ever contemplated in the history of nigeria local government. Local government autonomy bill news latest breaking. Since the inception of the system of local government in nigeria, there had been persistent clamour for the autonomy of the local government as the third tier of governance in the federation. Following the clamour for local government autonomy, a new lease of life that will usher in new development strides and galvanise labour activism at the grassroots level may be beckoning, as the joint state local government account and the power of state houses of assemblies to regulate activities of the local governments, which one way or another counters the objective of lg autonomy, may.
Rather than a debate on local government autonomy, we should be asking whether we need states. Read all the latest news, breaking stories, top headlines, opinion, pictures and videos about local government autonomy from nigeria and the world on today. The study adopted secondary source of collecting data. Local government administration in nigeria and community. Local government autonomy in nigeria essay sample the basic irony between the u. Local government administration in nigeria and the localist. This was equally reinforced by several constitutional provisions in the 1979 and 1999 constitutions. Postindependence era was followed with the importance of bringing the local government system to the limelight. In effect, the paper set as its objectives to examine the challenges of lg administration, previous efforts by the governments in nigeria to address the challenges and lessons that could be learnt from other workable systems. Local government autonomy bill news latest breaking stories. In nigeria, the nature and structure of transactions or interactions between the three tiers of government determine the degree of autonomy. Pdf local government autonomy and its effectiveness in.
Many reasons, ranging from the political to the socioeconomic, have been given for the creation of local government. Using theoretical analytical method, the paper found that local government system in nigeria has been an unfortunate orphan under the state and federal government. Relevance and effectiveness in poverty reduction and economic development ito diejomaoh research fellow, african institute for applied economics eric eboh african institute for applied economics abstract this paper examines the local government system in nigeria, its relevance and impact in poverty. Local government in nigeria is rooted on historical antecedents of. Local government administration in nigeria and the localist theory. The paper canvassed the need for synergy and collaborative approach to community development and reform initiatives anchored on theory to practice policy inclination. To make the local government areas viable and functional within the federation called nigeria, i suggest that rather than continue to toy with the impracticable idea of autonomy, the constitution should be amended by the appropriate authorities to divest the state governments of the powers to conduct local government elections. It is interesting to note that even the federal government has in recent times joined in championing the course of local government autonomy.
The framework for local government autonomy was put in place at least in a formal sense but the. One of the arguments in favour of local governments is for the simple reason of accountability. Local government autonomy, the nass dothnowrong the. In nigeria, the nature and structure of transactions or interactions between the three tiers of. Aug 30, 2017 local government autonomy, the nass dothnowrong. Mrs lizzy samuel teacher i think the issue of local government autonomy would have been ideal if we have honest, sincere and selfless people as chairmen. So far the local government system in nigeria has not been stable and thus its future remains bleak, uncertain and insecure. National assembly to support local government autonomy the. The paper examines local government and intergovernmental relations in nigeria. Local government accountability for service delivery in. The topical issue of local government lg autonomy in nigeria in relation to the development of the localities. Zever abstract the focus of the paper is on autonomy induced governance problems of local government.
Sep 03, 2017 to explain if full autonomy is given to nigeria local government system ofu local government will enhance its service delivery. The paper, therefore, suggests a new focus in which the emphasis should be on the desirability or otherwise of substantial autonomy for local governments in nigeria. Local government is not sovereign like independent nationstate. It is a subordinate government which derives its existence and power from laws enacted by a superior government. The 36 states in nigeria and their local government areas. The authors further assessed the extent of decentralization and inter governmental relations in nigeria impact on the local. Obviously, compared to a state governor, it is easier to hold the local government chairperson to account. Local government and intergovernmental relations in. The major challenge bedeviling the operations of local government area in nigeria is local government autonomy as local government areas in nigeria are not truly autonomous. Following the clamour for local government autonomy, a new lease of life that will usher in new development strides and galvanise labour activism at the grassroots level may be beckoning, as the joint statelocal government account and the power of state houses of assemblies to regulate activities of the local governments, which one way or another counters the objective of lg autonomy, may. Local government autonomy news latest breaking stories. The local government areas in nigeria have however, not been very effective due to the fact that they are very much dependent on the state government. Department of public administration ahmadu bello university, kongocampus, zaria kaduna state, nigeria.
Local government autonomy and development of localities in nigeria. Local government autonomy in nigeria essay example. The nigeria union of local government employees nulge south west zone, said the approval of local government autonomy will help put an end to the security challenges in most of the rural. Commentary local government financial autonomy in nigeria. It revealed that there is a remarkably difference between local government autonomy and.
The main objective of the study is to intellectualize local government autonomy from a new perspective from the ones in extant literature. At the theoretical level, it will add to the frontier of knowledge of nigerian federalism and local. The implication of the formal system of local government in nigeria leave very much to be desired because local government people at the grass root level must enjoy a high degree of autonomy granted to the various local government, with particular reference to ilorin west local government area. National assembly to support local government autonomy.
Local government autonomy in nigeria kamlaraj enterprises. It also examined the nature of three tier federative structure of france and nigeria and the reasons for the failure of the model in nigeria to guarantee local government autonomy as envisaged by the design. The first seeks to provide a conceptual framework for understanding the political process in nigeria. The three regional governments enacted the northern, western and eastern nigeria local government laws of 1954 respectively. A need for constitutional reform the basic irony between the u. The paper argues that local government is not mutually exclusive of other levels of government and. Speaker house of representatives, mr yakubu dogara, on tuesday in abuja said the national assembly was committed to ensuring that local.
Why local governments should be given autonomy vanguard news. Local government administration in nigeria has been in existence since 1972 and its primary function is to bring government nearer to the people at the grassroots. Nigeria cannot be an exception to this global norm. During the colonial period, there were reforms through the northern nigeria, western nigeria, and eastern. The politics of local government in nigeria reloaded has been inspired by the 20 constitution amendment process initiated by the national assembly. Read all the latest news, breaking stories, top headlines, opinion, pictures and videos about local government autonomy bill from nigeria and the world on today. What are the reasons for the creation of local government in nigeria. In nigeria, since the 1976 local government reform, and subsequent. Abstract local governments are not sovereign unlike independent nation states. Exploring the nexus jide ibietan1, peter ndukwe2 abstract the main objective of this paper is to examine the nature and challenges of local government administration in nigeria using the localist theory as framework of analysis. Local governments in nigeria relevance and effectiveness. Local government autonomy in nigeria essay 998 words. Jan 06, 2018 local government autonomy and the nigerian federation.
The problems of autonomy and control in local government in nigeria. Dec 19, 2017 speaker house of representatives, mr yakubu dogara, on tuesday in abuja said the national assembly was committed to ensuring that local government administration in the country got autonomy. Local authorities in many advanced countries enjoy. Aba north, aba south, arochukwu, bende, isiala ngwa south, ikwuano, isiala, ngwa north, isukwuato, ukwa west, ukwa east, umuahia, umuahia south. The nature and structure of transactions or interactions between the three tiers of government determine the degree of autonomy. The paper will also examine some of the inherent factors inhibiting local government autonomy in nigeria. Here is the list of all the 36 states in nigeria and abuja and their local government areas. In strengthening local government autonomy, the government commitment to the cause of local government autonomy was demonstrated by the babangida administration when it was announced that the share of local governments from the federation account was increased from 10% to 15% in 1991 and then to 20% at the expense of the state government. The intrigues of local government autonomy in nigeria. Nigeria summary nigeria is a federal republic with three tiers of government. The second examines the evolution of state creation in nigeria and iden. Local government and fiscal autonomy for local government.
Invariably, effective autonomy and igr that respects the powers and. Despite these great efforts which many believed would guarantee local government autonomy, there still exists a number of unresolved issues which hinders local government performance. The authors further assessed the extent of decentralization and intergovernmental relations in nigeria impact on the local. Although democratically elected local government is protected by the constitution, and development areas and autonomous communities are created by individual state legislation, elected local government is lacking in. Local government autonomy as an imperative for true. The politics of local government autonomy in nigeria reloaded felix akpan, phd okonette ekanem department of public administration, university of calabar, nigeria abstract the politics of local government in nigeria reloaded has been inspired by the 20 constitution amendment process initiated by the national assembly. Local government administration in nigeria has been in existence since 1972 and its primary function is to bring government nearer to. This paper looks beyond the arguments for the merits or demerits of local government autonomy as encapsulated in the dominant debate. In nigeria, reforms have been articulated and executed in a bid to correct certain perceived excessive state encroachment, abuse of powers and the use of.
The topical issue of local government lg autonomy in nigeria in relation to the development of the localities, the raison detre of lgs, has been examined in this paper. Politics and challenges of the 1999 constitution asaju, k. Local government autonomy and its effectiveness in nigeria. Abstract local governments are not sovereign unlike independent nationstates.
Jan, 2017 to make the local government areas viable and functional within the federation called nigeria, i suggest that rather than continue to toy with the impracticable idea of autonomy, the constitution should be amended by the appropriate authorities to divest the state governments of the powers to conduct local government elections. Local governments are not sovereign unlike independence nationstate. But unfortunately, the reverse is the case in nigeria. Local government and intergovernmental relations in nigerias. It revealed that there is a remarkably difference between local government autonomy and democratic governance in nigeria and usa.
These include representative lgs, the size of lgs, revenue, and personnel. The federal military government accepted the report by recognizing local governments as a third tier of government and assigning specific duties to them see fourth schedule of the 1979 constitution. The study further shows that in nigeria, the kind of autonomy the federal and state governments transfer to the local government is largely shaped by ethnicity and. To explain if full autonomy is given to nigeria local government system ofu local government will enhance its service delivery. Genesis group nigeria supports the rivers state government in the fight against the novel coronavirus covid19. Port harcourt polytechnic, nigeria abstract the question of autonomy for local government has long divided both scholars and practitioners of the nigerian local government system and the polarization remains. Jan 15, 20 one of the arguments in favour of local governments is for the simple reason of accountability. Nigeria is a federation, with three tiers of government. Since 2008, the question of whether the 774 local government areas within the federal republic of nigeria should be granted autonomous status like the states or not has been a recurrent decimal during constitutional amendment debates in nigeria. The struggle for local government autonomy in nigeria is as old as the history of nigeria. The scope and future of local government autonomy in nigeria.
This is with a view to understanding the intricacies of the fundamental problem of local government autonomy in nigeria. Local government administration in nigeria and the. The process of democratizing local government administration started as far back as 1954. I think that was a right move, otherwise nigerias wahala will multiply if the 774 local government councils are granted autonomy because they will take corruption to the next level, said.
Proceeding from theoretical framework and conceptualizations for clearer understanding, the paper discusses some dominant autonomy issues. An overview of local government autonomy and its functions in. The quest or agitation for local government autonomy has been a recurring decimal in the evolution of the nigerian federation. Many reasons, ranging from the political to the socioeconomic. The paper examined a comparative analysis of local government autonomy and democratic governance in nigeria and usa. Local government and fiscal autonomy for local government in. Local authorities in many advanced countries enjoy relative. So if the local government are autonomous, i think it will be the best for the country. Model and determinants of statelocal governments relations in. Olowu says local government should have some degree of.
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