Supreme Court reserves judgment in FG’s suit seeking LG autonomy

The Supreme Court has reserved judgment in the suit filed by the Federal Government seeking full autonomy for the 774 local councils in the country.

Governors of the 36 states are, however, against the autonomy of local councils.

A seven-member panel of justices of the apex court led by Justice Garba Lawal reserved judgment in the suit, yesterday, to a date that would be communicated to parties after the adoption of processes filed by the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), on behalf of the Federal Government and those of the 36 governors, who are defendants in the suit marked SC/CV/343/2024.

Adopting his processes, including originating summons, further and better affidavit and composite address in response to the various objections by the defendants, the AGF pleaded with the Supreme Court to grant all the reliefs sought by the Federal Government in the suit, while the governors, through their respective Commissioners for Justice, opposed the Federal Government’s request and asked the court to dismiss the suit.

While some states asked for dismissal of the suit with substantive cost, others did not ask for cost in their various notices of preliminary objection and counter-affidavits.

The AGF, on behalf of the Federal Government, instituted the court action against the governors primarily seeking full autonomy for local councils as third tiers of government in the country.

Fagbemi is praying to the apex court for an order prohibiting governors from unilateral, arbitrary and unlawful dissolution of democratically elected local council leaders.

The country’s chief law officer, in the originating summons he signed, is also praying to the Supreme Court for an order permitting the funds standing in the credits of local councils to be directly channeled to them from the Federation Account, in line with the provisions of the Constitution as against the alleged unlawful joint accounts created by governors.

He also wants the apex court to make an order stopping governors from constituting caretaker committees to run the affairs of local councils as against the constitutionally recognised and guaranteed democratic system.

The Federal Government further applied for an order restraining the governors from tampering with funds from the Federation Account for the benefit of local councils when no democratically elected local council system is put in place in the states.

The governors were sued through their respective states’ Attorneys-General in the suit predicted on 27 grounds.

Fagbemi, therefore, asked the apex court to invoke Sections 1, 4, 5, 7 and 14 of the Constitution to declare that the governors and Houses of Assembly are under obligation to ensure a democratic system at the third tier of government and to invoke the same sections to hold that the governors cannot lawfully dissolve democratically-elected local councils.

He is also praying for invocation of Sections 1, 4,  5, 7 and 14 of the Constitution to declare that dissolution of democratically-elected local councils by the governors or anyone using the state powers derivable from laws enacted by the Houses of Assembly or Executive Order is unlawful, unconstitutional, null and void.