NULGE To Resist Scrapping Of LGAs

The State chapter of the
Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) is set to join its counterparts in other states across the country to resist the alleged recommendation of scrapping of local governments areas the county by the ongoing National conference from the 1999 constitution.
In an interview with The Tide , the State President of the union, Comrade Franklin Ajunwo said the local government areas as the third tier of the government should be empowered and strengthened to deliver on the dividends of democracy to the grassroots.
He said it was wrong for any group of people to recommend the scrapping of the local government areas  in the country.
The union boss said members of the union would mobilise against such attempt by any individual or group of individuals to expunge the third tier of government as constitutionally guaranteed by the 1999 constitution as amended.
He said members of the union had asked the delegates of the national conference not to approve the recommendation of its sub-committee on the status of local government councils.
Ajunwo said the leadership of the union had urged the conference to jettison any decision that was against the autonomy of the councils.
The Tide recalled that the national conference committee on devolution of power and structure of government of the conference had recommended that local government councils be put under the control of state governments and expunged from the constitution.
The state president said the National President of the union, Comrade Ibrahim Khaled has rejected at the calls that local government councils should be expunged from the constitution.
Ajunwo said NULGE’s position was that “this position is arbitrary and does not take into consideration the feeling of Nigerians and recommendations of previous panels and committees and the National Assembly position.”
He said the union thought it would be “wise and logical” for the conference to base its position on the reports done after collating and analyzing memoranda from the public on the issue.
The NULGE boss said the union’s national president  also frowned at the composition of the delegates to the conference, which he said did not give adequate representation to the local governments.
He said none of the 774 local government councils was considered as important to represent the interest of the grassroots at the conference, stressing that the position of the union was very clear on this issue, that NULGE will not accept anything less than strengthening the institutional framework of local governments to function as a tier of government.
Ajunwo noted that local governments must remain recognised as provided in the 1999 constitution, adding that any move to expunge it would be opposed by the union.
The labour leader said handing over the third tier of government to state governments was a sure way of wiping out local governments.
He said the union had advised the conference to conduct an independent research into how the councils had fared under the control of the state governments particularly with respect to funding, structure, democratisation and policy.

Philip Okparaji