Reps support bill on Local Government financial autonomy

Members of the House of Representatives on Thursday expressed overwhelming support for the bill which seeks to guarantee the financial and administrative autonomy of Local Government Councils and uniformity of tenure across the country which scaled through Second Reading.

The bill was sponsored by Hon. Munsur Manu Soro, who frowned at the state of under-development of the rural areas across the country and high-mindedness of State Governors who misappropriate funds allocated to Local Government Councils.

While leading the debate, Hon. Soro stated that the Bill seeks the administration and financial independence of the Local Government Councils to ensure development gets to the grassroots, empowers the people and eradicates the constraining reasons for rural to urban migration.

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Hon. Soro stated that this is needed since the situation as it now makes the Local Government councils are stifled and at the whims of state governments.

He decried the gross mismanagement of Local government funds which has caused extreme poverty in the Local Government Councils, the rise of insurgency and insecurity, as well as the high turnover of political office holders every four years, as the people express lack of faith in their representatives.

In his intervention, the Deputy Speaker, Hon. Ahmed Wase argued that it is not all the Governors that mismanage local government funds, adding that the bill was aimed at helping Nigerians in the local government councils and develop the region.

While ruling on the debate, Hon. Wase referred to the Special Ad-Hoc Committee on Constitutional Review for further legislative action.