It's conspiracy against democracy, Afenifere lampoons Tinubu, FG over LG autonomy judegment

BY STEPHEN GBADAMOSI

Pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, on Saturday, described the Supreme Court judgement that gave financial freedom to the 744 local governments in the country last Thursday as a conspiracy against democracy.

The organisation made its position known at the weekend in a statement jointly signed by its national leader, Pa Ayo Adebanjo; and national publicity secretary, Prince Justice Faloye.

In the statement, titled; “Tinubu And The Grand Conspiracy Against Democracy And True Federalism in Nigeria,” Afenifere said the Supreme Court had played to the gallery in handing down the judgment, accusing the apex court of working in cahoots with the Federal Government to undermine democracy and tried federalism. “Afenifere views the judgment of the Supreme Court in the case filed by the Federal Government on the so-called local government autonomy as a sheer judicial conspiracy in cahoots with the Tinubu-led administration against the Nigerian state and its foundational principle of federalism.

“Rather than interpret the constitution to uphold its elementary but overriding federal principle, which recognises only a two-tier federal structure of the central government and federating states, the Supreme Court played to the gallery and wittingly allowed itself a most retrogressive declaration that the the power of the government is portioned into three arms of government; the federal, state and local governments.

“For the avoidance of doubt, Afenifere makes bold to say that in line with its negotiated basis of existence, Nigeria is a ‘Federation consisting of States and a Federal Capital Territory,’ as affirmed by Section 2(2) of the 1999 Constitution.

“While Afenifere frowns at corruption and misuse of public funds at levels of government, it condemns, in most unmistaken terms, the subjugation of the states and thier constitutional roles, including the local government system to the whims and caprices of the Federal Government by any means, including obvious manipulation of the Federation Account as in the present case.

“It is becoming stridently eloquent that with just over a year of its inauguration, the Tinubu-led government, more than even the military administrations, is uncannily determined to unitarise the Nigerian Federation.

“Part of the unitary package is the creation of the Ministry of Livestock Development which is the audacious euphemism for the introduction of cattle colony, RUGA and those other policies by which the (Muhammadu) Buhari-led administration sought to appropriate lands in the states, contrary to the Land Use Act and the constitution which vests land in the state in the governor in trust for the people.

“Afenifere insists that the way forward for Nigeria is not the confusing rudderless tinkering, but a holistic restructuring of the polity to re-enact the fundamental principles of true federalism as agreed by the founding fathers. This includes the fact that the local government system is an exclusive preserve of the states, either by direct constitutional provisions or residual powers in a federation,” Afenifere said.